The Man Behind The Curtain
by StarrGazer47
Summary: Special Agent Tony DiNozzo has spent most of his life avoiding thinking about his mother's death, but the team's newest case is bringing up demons from his past.  Can he avoid dealing with his past or will it begin to affect his present? **NOW COMPLETE**
1. Chapter 1

I wrote this story because I really wanted to know what happened to Tony's mother and explore more of his backstory. I'm not sure all the science or computer stuff is correct, but I used it to make it fit the story. I hope you like it.

**I do not own NCIS, but I would love to!**

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The walls of the big old house seemed like they were closing in on him as he made the long walk down the hallway to her bedroom. Each step caused his heart to beat faster and faster, its rhythm growing louder in his head. A sense of foreboding filled his body. He stepped over a table that had been overturned spotting her favorite vase, shattered, its flowers spilled on the floor. Further down there lay a painting ripped down the middle, its occupants gleeful faces mocking his fear.

Her bedroom door hung open displaying the horror that lay within. Feathers sprinkled the floor and bed. The doors of the armoire were splintered, shards of wood scattered the room. The sheets hung on the floor ripped, something lay within them. He moved closer to get a better look and his heart stopped when he recognized the hilt of a knife, covered in blood.

His stomach rolled over and he could taste the bile rise into his throat. He didn't want to keep looking at this scene, didn't want to go further and find what he knew must be in this room. The fight that had taken place here had been a long and dark one, neither party willing to give in. His heart beat a frantic tattoo inside his chest. He willed his feet to keep moving.

The bathroom lay to his left. That's where he found her, in the bathtub. She lay sprawled, her legs and hands spilling out of the tub. Blood coated her clothing and face, spilling down the sides of her body. Her face, eyes wide open, held a glimpse of the terror she had known in her last seconds. He turned and was sick in the sink basin. His knees began to shake and almost gave out.

Anthony DiNozzo turned around and stared into the frozen face of his mother's corpse.


	2. Chapter 2

Tony strolled into the squadroom, head bopping along to the Sinatra on his iPod. He spotted Ziva at her desk, head down, filling out paperwork. She looked up as he dropped his stuff on his desk and booted up his computer.

"Good morning Tony. You look like you are in a good mood this morning."

"Morning Zee-Vah! Who wouldn't feel good today? The sun is shining, birds are chirping. Spring is in the air." The 1000-Watt DiNozzo smile lit up his face, and his green eyes sparkled with their usual mischief.

"You are up to something aren't you? Did you do something to my keyboard? My chair?" She jumped up, turning her head from side to side looking for some kind of evidence of a trap.

"Did Tony take the screws out of your chair again?" McGee offered, walking into the room heading for his desk to enjoy his breakfast burrito.

"I do not know what he did, but he did something." Ziva's eyes grew murderous as she stalked around her desk towards Tony's.

"Can't a guy just enjoy a nice spring day. Jeez." Tony started to sweat as Ziva leaned across his desk, her eyes probing his, looking for a sign of deceit.

"No. You enjoy playing with people Tony." McGee watched with joy as Ziva intimidated DiNozzo across the room.

"Thanks for the support McGoo."

"If you have anything up your shirt I will find out, and I will make you pay DiNozzo."

"It's up your sleeves, Zi. But you are welcome to check up my shirt if you want." He waggled his eyebrows at her, wishing she would.

"Don't forget that I can kill you with this stapler." She picked up his Mighty Mouse stapler of his desk and shot a staple in his direction causing him to flinch.

"Don't kill him yet. You'll only make more work for yourself at the crime scene. Grab your gear. We've got a dead petty officer." Gibbs soared into the room and headed straight for the elevator, his team rushing to grab their stuff and catch up before the doors closed.

* * *

The crime scene they pulled up to looked like so many they had seen before. A young, white male lay crookedly on the couch of his apartment apparently stabbed to death. The team began unloading their gear and set out to process the scene.

"DiNozzo pictures. McGee bag and tag. Ziva interviews." Gibbs called to his team as he went to examine the crime scene. Each team member hurrying to complete their duties.

"Mr. Palmer, I distinctly told you to take a left at that stop sign. If you wish to remain behind the wheel, we might need to enroll you in driving classes or purchase you a hearing aid." Ducky walked into the tiny apartment followed by Jimmy with a look on his face that spoke of a retort. One look at Gibbs silenced his rejoinder.

"I'm sorry Dr. Mallard." Palmer decided it was best to swallow his original reply with Agent Gibbs standing by.

"Get lost again Duck?" A small smile played across Gibbs' face as he watched the ME and his assistant begin to examine their body.

"Only to be reminded that if one wants something done properly, one had better do it one's self." Ducky seemed like he was about to launch into one of his usual tangents so Gibbs took the opportunity to cut him off.

"What do we got Duck?"

Ducky turned his attention back to the body. "Yes, it seems cause of death is a stab wound to the upper torso. Time of death is approximately three hours ago. No abrasions on the arms or signs of a struggle, so…"

DiNozzo cut in snapping a picture of the victim. "Victim knew his attacker."

"It would seem so. I'll know more once I get him back to autopsy Jethro, and of course Ms. Scuito will need to run a Tox screen. Mr. Palmer go get the gurney."

"Yes Dr. Mallard. Right away."

"If he wasn't such a fine assistant, I'd really have to think about terminating him."

"Over a wrong turn." Gibbs smirked.

"Punctuality should always be foremost Jethro. To be late is to miss out on life. You know that reminds me of the baker in my town growing up. Always late to rise, and missed out on…."

"Duck." Gibbs had no time for a field trip down Ducky's memory lane.

Ducky quietly returned to his body and Gibbs turned to his senior field agent, waiting for his report.

"No sign of forced entry Boss. No sign of a struggle. Except for the dead body, the apartment is pretty spotless. Doesn't look like he's been here long. Clothes packed in an overnight bag. Looks like he just returned from somewhere, probably deployment." DiNozzo rattled off his findings so quickly he was out of breath by the end of it.

"That it, DiNozzo."

"Yes, uh yeah. I think so." Tony began to sweat under the Gibbs glare, frantically searching his mind for something he had missed.

"You think so?" Gibbs enjoyed his own pranks. Torturing his agents was high on that list. He watched as Tony squirmed.

"I know. That's it boss." Tony decided he hadn't missed anything.

"Alright." Gibbs turned to get his next report from Ziva. "Go."

"Neighbors say that Petty Officer Joel Sanders just returned from a deployment. He was a quiet neighbor. No one here really knew him. They heard a heated argument around 0800 this morning. One neighbor, a Mr. Petty, says he heard the door slam and saw a white male, blond hair, approximately 6 feet tall exiting the apartment building a minute later. They heard nothing else after that."

"Must be our killer. Fits the T.O.D. Boss I found the murder weapon. Looks like Navy issue combat knife. It's been wiped clean, well except for the blood." McGee held up an evidence bag with the knife in it for them all to inspect, wearing a triumphant smile.

"You want a doggie treat McGruff. Keep wagging your tail like that." Tony couldn't help but comment on the proud look on McGee's face. McGee threw Tony a look.

Once the scene had been processed, the team packed up the evidence and headed back to the Navy yard.

* * *

Gibbs exited the elevator and made his way into Abby's lab, CafPow in hand. He placed the bright red drink on the desk next to his favorite forensic scientist.

"Gibbs! No you can't be here yet. I don't have anything for you yet. Go away." Abby closed her eyes, hoping that when she opened them Gibbs would be gone. She slowly opened one eye to peak and he was still there.

"Abs.."

"No. I told you. Mr. Mass Spec is working but you can't rush him. You know that. And I'm still waiting on Ducky for my samples."

"Abs…"

"No. I will have something soon, but not now. So go ahead. Shoo." Abby gestured for him to head out.

"Abs, I just came down here to bring your CafPow."

"Oh. Well in that case. Thanks!" She grabbed her big drink and started sucking away on her favorite caffeine fix.

"There were no prints on the knife."

"No, it was wiped. I'll test the blood, but it should be a match to Petty Officer Sanders."

"Look to see if there's anyone else's blood on the knife." Gibbs suggested.

"Think the killer left us a friendly drop to help us along." Abby bounced up and down on the balls of her feet unable to stand still.

"I don't know. I just have a feeling in my…"

"In your gut." Abby finished for him. "I trust that steel-coated stomach of yours. If it says check the knife, I will!"

Gibbs smiled down at Abby. He leaned in and gave her a kiss on the cheek and swept out of the room.

"When I do have something…" Abby began.

"I'll be back." Gibbs yelled as he entered the elevator to check on his agents.

* * *

Back in the squadroom Gibbs' team worked frantically to dig up background on Petty Officer Sanders before the Boss returned from his routine coffee run.

The ding of the elevator signaled Gibbs return, and his team jumping up in a Pavlovian response.

"What do we got?" He barked.

"Petty Officer Sanders. Worked as a systems analyst for the Navy. He just returned from a 18 month deployment on the USS Enterprise. Grew up in Richmond, Virginia. Comes from a clean middle class family. Nothing on his service record." Tony spoke quickly as he put the victim's stats up on the plasma screen. Ziva grabbed the remote from Tony's hand and began to rattle off what she had found out.

"I spoke with the petty officer's C.O. He said that he was a quiet guy, kept to himself, but always got his work done. No problems with his fellow officers. I also spoke with some of his bunk mates on board the Enterprise. They said Sanders was well-liked and got along with everyone." Ziva finished her speech, and handed the remote to McGee. She noticed that Gibbs was beginning to look even more unhappy than usual.

"So we've got nothing?" Gibbs stared at his agents waiting for someone to give him something he could use.

"Not nothing, boss." McGee began pulling up Sanders bank statements onto the plasma. "I looked over the petty officer's bank statements. Starting a little over two years ago there are monthly deposits of ten to fifteen thousand dollars. The payments seem to end two months ago." McGee finished with a flourish knowing he had found something they could use.

"He's not getting _that_ from the Navy."

"No he's not DiNozzo. Where are the payments coming from?"

"An offshore account."

"Can you trace it McGee?" Frustration edged Gibbs voice.

"I'm trying boss, but so far…no." Gibbs surveyed his agents with disbelief. This couldn't be all they had. With this information they were never going to find out who killed Sanders.

"What about the guy the neighbor saw?"

"No security cameras outside the apartment or in the halls. Neighbor didn't see what car the man got into."

Gibbs glared at them. "Somebody get me something I can use. Now!" The three agents hightailed it back to their desks and began digging deeper into Sanders life in order to avoid Gibbs' wrath.

"I've got something you can use." Leon Vance walked into the squadroom followed by a young boy and a very pretty woman who appeared to be in her early 20s. "How about someone who can identify the killer?"

"Who's that Leon?" Gibbs drawled.

The little boy stepped forward. He couldn't be more than 10 years old. His sandy brown hair hung in his blue eyes. He cleared his throat to speak. "I know who killed your guy. It was my dad."


	3. Chapter 3

Travis Becker stared up at the agents surrounding him. He wasn't afraid of them, but they were looking at him strangely. He couldn't figure out what they were thinking and that bothered him.

Gibbs had brought Travis up to the conference room to talk about his dad, Commander Gregory Becker.

"So tell me, why do you think your dad killed Petty Officer Sanders?" Gibbs always thought it was best to be straight with kids.

"My dad is selling Navy secrets, Sanders found out so he had to…you know, get rid of him." The boy cut straight to the point, but he seemed to stumble over the adult jargon. Travis turned and smiled at Agent David, the lone female in the room except his nanny Elena. She smiled back at him wondering what he was thinking. "Has anyone ever told you that your eyes are like chocolate diamonds, glittering in an Arabian sky."

Ziva's eyebrows shot up. She couldn't believe this ten year old was flirting with her, especially now, when he was accusing his father of murder. It reminded her of something Tony would do. She glanced at Tony to see his reaction. He was even more stunned than she was.

"No. No one has ever put it quite that way before." Tony couldn't believe she wasn't tearing this kid up for this.

"You seeing anyone?" Clearly Travis believed in going big or going home. Ziva could hear Tony snort behind her.

"I think I am a little old for you. Maybe we should get back to what you were saying about your father." Ziva was determined to steer the conversation back to a more relevant topic, since she could practically see Gibbs fuming.

"Yeah that would be good." Vance was surprised at the nerve this kid had. He seemed pretty nonchalant about the whole situation.

"It's like I said. My dad didn't want anyone to find out about what he was doing, so he had to make sure Sanders wouldn't talk."

"How do you know your dad was selling secrets?"

"I heard him on the phone with Sanders. He told him he was going to kill him."

Vance and Gibbs shared a look. "Where was your mom during all this?"

"My mom died two years ago. I'm just a poor motherless boy, with nobody to love me. Does that change your mind about going out with me Agent David?" Travis's face held no pain over the passing of his mother. He gave Ziva two big puppy dog eyes and she couldn't help but melt a little.

"Maybe you can give me a call sometime when you are older." Ziva couldn't help but give the kid a little of what he wanted. Besides his mom was dead, and his dad was likely a murderer. He deserved something.

Gibbs had heard just about enough. This kid was a miniature DiNozzo, turning on the charm whenever he got to a subject he didn't want to talk about.

"Tony, why don't you take Travis to get a soda. Ziva, you and McGee look into Commander Becker. See what you can dig up."

Tony and Ziva headed out of the conference room with Travis in tow.

"Agent David, you don't know what you're missing." Travis called after her as she headed in the opposite direction.

"Let it go, kid. It's not going to happen." Tony slapped him on the shoulder.

"Just because you struck out doesn't mean I will." Travis was certainly going to give Tony a run for his money.

Back inside the conference room, Travis's nanny Elena decided there was something Agent Gibbs needed to know. "Agent Gibbs, I need tell you something about Travis's mom. She was murdered two years ago. It was a home invasion. They never caught the guy. Since then things between the Commander and Travis have been strained at best and volatile at their worst."

"Elena, do you have any idea where Commander Becker may be?"

"No, I'm sorry Agent Gibbs. He was gone before we woke up this morning. When Travis saw he was gone he demanded we come to NCIS right away because he thought his dad was going to kill someone."

Gibbs and Vance shared another look. This case was becoming more complicated by the minute, but at least they now had a suspect.

* * *

Sunlight filtered through the blinds in the director's office spilling across his desk. Gibbs stood near the door, clearly ready to bolt.

"Leon, I've got a case to solve. I can't do that from up here."

"Gibbs, I don't have to tell you that SecNav's going to be breathing down my neck on this one. We need to wrap this up quick, and find out exactly what the Commander has been up to."

"That's what I'm trying to go do."

"If the Commander has been selling secrets there's no telling who or what has been compromised. Hell, we don't even know who he was selling them to. This is going to explode in our faces if we don't play catch-up real fast."

"Well Leon then I better get started." Gibbs headed for the door, annoyed that Vance would waste his time with threats.

* * *

Tony slid his hand along the vending machine searching for the sweet spot, finding it, he gave it a good whack. An orange soda slid down into his waiting hand. He handed Travis the soda and sat down.

"How do you work with a hottie like Ziva every day? I would never get any work done."

Tony shook his head. He had to admire the kid's gusto. "Travis, look I was impressed back there with that whole chocolate diamonds thing, but you gotta lighten up a little. Don't try so hard."

"Got any tips." Travis looked at him expectantly.

"Pretend like you could care less. Girls go crazy for a guy who has no interest in them."

"That really works?"

"Like a charm." Tony smiled down at the little guy. Travis seemed a lot like he had at that age, all bravado and charm. No one could say no to a ten year old with that kind of machismo.

Travis looked down at his soda, turning serious. "I guess you all want to know where my dad is. Well I can't tell you. I have no idea where he is, that's why I came to you guys."

"Travis, it's not your job to find your dad. It's ours."

"I never know where he is. He's always working."

"I know exactly how you feel, buddy. Growing up my dad wasn't around much. He was always taking off to somewhere more important." Tony suddenly felt a strange connection to this boy.

"All my father cares about is himself. He's the most selfish person in the world. When my mom died, she was all alone. He was supposed to be there, but of course something more important came up. If he had been there…"

_Tony was walking down the hallway to his mother's room. Everywhere he looked spoke of a deadly fight._

Tony stared at Travis. "How did she die Travis?"

_He entered the room. There was blood everywhere. So much blood._

"I should have been there, but my dad made me leave. He sent me to my friends house so he and my mom could spend time together alone. But he left her too. When I came home that night I knew something was wrong, even before I opened the door. I just felt it, in my stomach. When I walked in, it looked like a scene from a movie, you know, stuff thrown all over. She was… in the kitchen…they said it was a burglar…" Travis's eyes shined with unshed tears and his voice cracked barely able to get out the whole story. It was clear that he normally didn't talk about this tragedy in his young life.

_He saw her face, the fear etched there forever. Blood dripping from her fingertips hitting the ground._

"If you had been there, you might have been hurt too." Tony offered up what he knew was a pathetic consolation.

_His hand reached for the door. Fear gripped his insides._

"At least she wouldn't have been alone."

_She was all alone. We never should have left her, gone on that fishing trip._

"My dad, he's just moved on. I don't know if he even ever really loved her."

_"Who is she? Did you think I wouldn't find out? What would mom say?"_

"Listen my mom died when I was eight too. My dad didn't waste any time moving on." Tony cleared his throat. He wasn't used to speaking about this either, but something prodded him onward. Maybe it was the way Travis acted with Ziva, or the way his eyes looked when he talked about his mom, but suddenly Tony's secrets seemed to be spilling out.

"He packed away all her stuff, took down all her pictures. It was almost like she never existed. I used to think he didn't care, but now I think maybe he cared too much. He couldn't handle life without her. Thinking about her was too hard, so he just avoided dealing with her death. I don't know if he's ever dealt with it." Tony had never said that out loud before. He wasn't even sure if he really believed it until it was verbalized. This kid was dragging up too many old memories, memories he had fought long and hard to bury.

Travis looked skeptical. He held onto a deep belief that his father didn't care about what happened to his mother. It was hard to believe that he might actually care, especially with the way he had acted since that day.

Tony jumped up, determined not to return to that dark place he had escaped long ago. "Come on. I'll show you the forensics lab. We've got a forensic scientist I know you'll just love to meet."

"Is this scientist a girl?" The mischievous sparkle returned to Travis's eyes. He, like Tony, was clearly more comfortable with light hearted banter.

"No, Travis, she's a woman. And she is going to rock your 10 year old world."

* * *

"Ah, Jethro, right on time as usual." Gibbs walked into the cold autopsy room to get an update from Ducky on their murder victim.

"What do you got for me Duck?" Gibbs cut to the point, hoping to avoid any needless tangents.

"The autopsy confirmed my findings. Cause of death was the stab wound to the chest. However, there was a curious anomaly."

"Yea?"

"Ziva told me about your suspect, Commander Becker. I took the liberty of looking at his file. It was actually quite an interesting read. Did you know the Commander's father was from Scotland? Actually grew up in a town not far from my own. It seems he moved here when he was twenty due to…."

"Duck is there a point coming anytime soon?" Gibbs interrupted.

Ducky startled a moment from his thought path, took a second to get back on task. "Yes, yes. Of course there is. The stab wound is consistent with a left-handed assailant. However, the Commander's records indicate that he is right-handed."

"Could he have used his left hand to stab Sanders?"

"Well I assume it's possible, but he would have had to be extremely ambidextrous. The assailant in our case came up behind the victim. He grabbed his chin and mouth with his right hand and reached around to stab with his left." Ducky grabbed Jimmy to demonstrate the murderer's actions.

"That might be why there were no defensive wounds. If the assailant came from behind and surprised the guy." Jimmy pointed out.

"Yea, thanks Duck." Jethro headed out to find out what his agents had found out about Commander Becker.


	4. Chapter 4

Leroy Jethro Gibbs sailed back into the bullpen hoping his agents finally had something to give him about this case. "What do you got on Becker?"

McGee jumped up from his desk ready to spout off all they had learned about the Commander. "Commander Becker. 37 years old. Blonde hair. Six foot two. Fits the description of our suspect seen leaving Sanders apartment." McGee pointed this out, saw the look on Gibbs face and quickly continued. "Works in Naval intelligence in Norfolk. I went through all his financials. No red flags. Also looked into his phone records. Nothing popped except he did place a call 2 days ago to a number registered to Petty Officer Sanders. The call lasted 10 minutes. Seems to fit with what Becker's son said about the call."

Ziva took the remote from McGee and began to tell Gibbs what they had found about the murder of the Commander's wife. "Two years ago, the Commander's wife, Lieutenant Sarah Becker, was found dead in their home. She was stabbed to death in the upper chest, similar to our victim. The Lieutenant was home alone at the time of the murder. Travis was at a friend's house and the Commander claims he was with his C.O. From the crime scene photos it looks like a robbery gone bad. There was some jewelry and electronics missing. Initially the Commander was the prime suspect. Neighbors claimed the couple had been fighting prior to the murder. However, Becker's C.O. and his wife both claim to have been with Becker at the time of the murder. The murder was never solved but officially ruled a burglary."

Gibbs was starting to get that frustrated look on his face again. He looked around at his agents and saw that one was missing. "Where's DiNozzo?" he barked.

"Right here boss." Tony walked into the squadroom. He glanced at the photos up on the screen and froze. There on the screen lay a young woman with pretty brown hair. She had a stab wound decorating her front and blood staining her clothes. Around her lay a mess of papers and broken shelving.

_Her eyes, frozen in terror, haunted his dreams every night. Every time he closed his eyes that was all he could see. All he remembered. _

"DiNozzo! Tony! Hey!" Gibbs continued to yell at his senior agent, attempting to get his attention. The look on Tony's face troubled him.

A Gibbs' slap to the back of his head finally penetrated the thick fog in Tony's brain. He looked around at the concerned faces of his Boss and fellow agents, and quickly pasted on his trademark smile. "Sorry Boss. Must have spaced out for a second. What were you saying?"

Gibbs wasn't sure what to make of Tony's behavior, but he didn't have time to worry about it right now, so he plowed ahead. "Where's Travis?"

"Uh, he's down in the lab with Abby."

Gibbs glared at his Senior Agent a moment longer, but decided to get back on track. "Do we know where the Commander is?"

"The Commander didn't show up for work today. Nothing on his credit cards, and his cell is off." McGee knew this information was only going to make Gibbs more upset. As he hit the keys on his keyboard to bring up the credit info, his brow began to furrow as he suspected something amiss with his computer. All of a sudden his computer went black and a giant green monster popped up onto the screen shouting at him. McGee let out a girly scream and jumped back before he could control his reaction. "Tony!"

"I told you he was up to something. I knew it!" Ziva shouted in victory, glad she had been right and also glad that she was not the one who had been pranked.

Tony, however, didn't seem to be taking his usual enjoyment out of his prank. He still couldn't keep his eyes off the crime scene photos still plastered on the plasma. "Sorry McGee." He offered a weak apology and headed over to his desk. Now Gibbs was really starting to wonder what about this case seemed to be affecting Tony so much.

Ziva and McGee had also begun to worry. This was very unlike the Tony they knew, and more importantly he had been in such a good mood this morning. How could it have been altered so quickly?

Gibbs decided it was time to light a fire under his team.

"DiNozzo, David, Norfolk. Find the Commander."

"On it boss." Tony jumped up grabbing his stuff. Ziva followed him into the elevator glad to have an excuse to be alone so she could ask him what the hell was bothering him.

"McGee, I want you and Abby to go over all the evidence from the murder of Lieutenant Sarah Becker. We are going to rework that murder from the beginning. These two cases are linked somehow."

"No problem Boss." McGee was glad to finally have a direction to go in.

"McGee, make sure Ducky gets a copy of the autopsy of Lieutenant Becker."

"Sure Boss. What are you going to do?"

"I'm going to have a talk with the Commander's C.O." Gibbs sat down at his desk and picked up the phone as he watched his agents scurry off to get their work done. He was glad that they finally seemed to have a lead in this confusing case, but he was still worried about DiNozzo's odd behavior. That was just another thing to add to his problems with this case.

* * *

Once in the elevator Ziva had begun to question Tony about what was bothering him.

"What is wrong Tony? You are acting strangely."

"I'm fine Ziva."

"You did not even smile when McGee screamed like a little girl. Something is not right."

"Gibbs was standing right there. I was trying to avoid another headslap." Tony really wished she would stop starring at him like that. He felt as if he was being x-rayed.

"I do not believe you. Something about this case is bothering you."

"Well thanks for letting me know how I feel. Would you like to tell me what I'm feeling now?" Ziva knew she was headed into dangerous waters but she wasn't about to let this go. Besides she knew her partner better than almost anyone, except maybe Gibbs, and she knew that something was wrong. Of course she also knew that she had little chance of getting him to actually admit it, but that wasn't going to stop her.

"You are angry with me for being nosy. But you are my partner, and if something is affecting you than it affects me too. I just want to make sure you are ok. I care about you." The last part had not been easy to say, but she added it to get some sort of reaction out of him. It's not that it wasn't true, it's just that under normal circumstances she would never actually admit it, let alone to his face.

She had managed to get a reaction. Although not the one she was hoping for. "It's nice to know I'm so loveable, but really I'm fine, so just let it go." His cocky attitude was back.

"You can go on pretending, but I think we both know the truth."

They had finally reached the car when he snapped.

"Ziva! Do I do this to you! No! Because I know that when you say that you are fine, I know what you really mean is that you don't want to talk about it. And no matter what I do you aren't going to say anything until you're damn good and ready! So will you please just let it go?"

She stared at him, with those large brown eyes unblinking. She was taken aback but decided to keep her mouth shut. Ziva David did not let things go that easily. So they spent the entire ride in silence. Tony sat fuming, knowing that Ziva would keep pestering him until she got some answers. This was one time he wished she would just let it go. He wasn't going to talk about this with her, not with anybody.

Ziva watched him out of the corner of her eye, silently wondering what could be affecting him. This morning he didn't have a care in the world. What had happened to _that_ man? She knew him well enough to know that he used humor to cover what he was really feeling, but now he wasn't even trying to hide it. Something was very wrong, and she was going to do her best to find out what that was.

They arrived at Becker's house and the two agents made their way up to front door, both pulled out their weapons, ready for whatever they found. Tony looked in the window, but didn't see anyone inside.

Ziva called out to see if there was anyone in the house. "Commander Becker. NCIS. Open up." They waited but nothing stirred. They looked at each other, silently communicating. Tony lifted up his foot and kicked the door open. They entered the house, going through and clearing each room.

"No one's here." Ziva holstered her weapon and began to look around.

"Whoever was here left in a hurry." Tony observed from the bathroom.

"How do you know?" Ziva asked, making her way through the house. When she reached the bathroom she saw what he was talking about. The water in the sink was running over onto the floor. A toothbrush with toothpaste lay on the counter, next to that lay the Commander's cell phone.

* * *

"What do you got for me Timmy?" Abby perked up as McGee walked into her lab with a bunch of evidence.

"All the evidence from the murder of Sar…." McGee stopped short seeing Travis for the first time. The little boy had been having a ball with Abby. He had managed to charm her, and he was pretty sure, in his ten year old mind, that he could get a date out of her. "Hey Travis, having fun with Abs?"

"Yea, I have found out where almost all of her tattoos are. Only two more to go!"

McGee was stunned at the audacity of this kid, but also that Abby had been so forthcoming. "Abs?"

"What? He's a very good guesser."Abby responded guiltily. She shifted uncomfortably under his gaze. Abby decided to turn her attention back to the evidence when she realized Sarah Becker's name was on the boxes. "McGee, why don't you take Travis up to MTAC?" Abby raised her eyebrows, silently suggesting to McGee that he get Travis out of here before he realized what they were up to.

"Nooooo. I want to stay with you." Travis whined.

"Trust me, you'll have much more fun with McGee."

"I doubt that. Can't I hang out with Ziva instead."

"She's out trying to find your dad. C'mon I'll buy you a soda." McGee motioned towards the elevator.

"Fine but as soon as Ziva gets back, I'm hanging out with her."

McGee just shook his head. "Whatever you say buddy."

Gibbs and Ducky walked out of the elevator as McGee and Travis were heading out.

"Right on time Gibbs. As usual."

"What d'ya got for me Abs?" Gibbs placed a Caf-Pow next to the keyboard and waited to finally get a break in this case.

"Well that cast-iron gut of yours never fails. You were right Gibbs. There was blood on the knife from two individuals. The first was Petty Officer Sanders. I tested the second blood sample against Commander Becker's DNA."

"And.."

"Not a match. Sorry Gibbs." Abby saw Gibbs starting to get that frustrated glare. "If you give me someone else to test it against, I can get you answers, but without someone to test it against…" Abby trailed off.

"Run it against Lieutenant Becker's blood." Ducky suggested.

"The Commander's wife?"

"Yes, Jethro. That's what I wanted to tell you. I went over the autopsy for Sarah Becker. We have the same cause of death. Stab wound to the upper torso. I made a mold of the stab wound of our victim and compared it to the M.E.'s from the lieutenant's case and it is an exact match. It was the same knife that killed both victims."

"Ducky can I see that mold." Abby reached out and took the mold from Ducky, placing it under her microscope. The enlarged image of the knife's edge was projected up onto the plasma. Abby went back to her computer and started tapping away at the keys, pulling up an identical picture of the mold in Sarah Becker's case and the combat knife McGee had found at the scene.

"Look here. This is the mold from Lieutenant Becker's stabbing, and Sanders, and the knife McGee found. Look closely at the edge of the knife, near the tip." Abby pulled up an image of the knife magnified to show Gibbs. "Here. There is a nick right here. Now look at the mold Ducky made and the one from the Becker case. Same nick. I am one hundred percent positive that the same knife was used to kill Sarah Becker and Petty Officer Sanders."

Gibbs sported a small smirk, happy that they finally had some solid evidence. "Duck, was the wound made the same way in both cases."

"That's where we have an anomaly. In Lieutenant Becker's case, the evidence suggests a right handed assailant who approached in a frontward assault. There were no defensive wounds however, suggesting that she knew her killer as well."

"So either we have a killer who used the same weapon, but different hands." Abby looked unsure that was the case.

"Or we have two killers who used the same weapon." Gibbs finished. He was back to being irritated. This case was one step forward, three steps back.

Gibbs phone suddenly went off. "Yea, Gibbs." McGee was on the other end letting him know that Commander Becker's C.O. had arrived with his wife. "I'll be right up McGee."

"Find me some evidence that links Becker to these murders." Gibbs barked as he headed upstairs.

"No problem Gibbs!"

* * *

Captain Jonathan Mills sat across from Gibbs in the conference room, shifting uncomfortably under his glare. His wife Rebecca Mills sat calmly next to him with a polite smile on her face. Gibbs wasn't sure what it was, but Captain Mills and his wife made him uneasy. Captain Mills looked like he knew something, and Gibbs was determined to get it out of him. If there was one thing he had learned in his years as an agent it was to trust his instincts, and right now they were screaming that there was more to this case than they had uncovered so far.

"Agent Gibbs, I don't know if we can help you. We have no idea where Greg is." Mrs. Mills began with an almost false cheerfulness.

Gibbs ignored her and continued glaring at the Captain, enjoying making him uncomfortable. "You were with Commander Becker at the time of his wife's murder?"

Captain Mills was surprised at this question, he hadn't expected to be asked about Sarah. "I thought this was about Petty Officer Sanders. What does Sarah's murder have to do with it?"

"Just answer the question."

"Uh, yea. It was a Sunday afternoon. We were getting ready to have a few people over to watch the football game. Greg came over to talk to me about something that was bothering him. When he got home the cops were already there. Travis, he's…the one that….you know, found her."

"That poor kid. He has been through so much. Your heart just breaks for him." Mrs. Mills' pity sounded a little phony to Gibbs' ears.

"How long was the Commander at your house?"

The Captain and his wife looked at each other to confer as to how much time Becker had spent at their home. "Almost two hours. Remember sweetie I ran out to the store to get more chips for the party and when I got back at two Greg was leaving."

"Yea he came over about noon, so about two hours. I asked if he wanted to stay and watch the game, but he said he had to get home to his wife."

"What did he talk to you about?" Gibbs was starting to get the feeling that he was missing something.

"It was private." Captain Mills' lips had suddenly zipped up.

Gibbs glared at him, waiting for more.

"Was it about the fight that he had just had with his wife?"

Mills shifted some more in his chair. His eyes darted to his wife's. She seemed to begin to share his discomfort. Gibbs had hit a nerve. Mills began to sweat, unwilling to give up the confidence of his friend.

"It wasn't a fight."

"Then I guess the screaming the neighbors overheard was just about what was for dinner."

"Look, Sarah was a good woman. She was a good wife and mother…"

"But?"

"But she may have gotten in over her head."

Gibbs waited for Mills to elaborate.

"She was the one selling Navy secrets, not Greg." Mrs. Mills was clearly willing to say what her husband wasn't. That pronunciation left an uneasy silence in the conference room, as Gibbs tried to determine if she was telling the truth.

"Greg suspected something was up. That's what the fight was about. Sarah wouldn't tell him everything. He wasn't sure what to do, so he came to me for advice." The Captain seemed upset that his wife had let out the Commander's secret.

"Why didn't you tell anyone about this when Lieutenant Becker was murdered?"

"I figured that's why she got killed, plus we weren't even sure that's what she was doing. I was protecting Greg and Travis. If whoever killed Sarah knew that Greg was curious, they wouldn't have been safe. I was protecting my friend."

"No, what you were doing is called obstruction of justice." Gibbs had heard about enough.

"Now wait a minute, Agent Gibbs, my husband and I have answered all your questions. We don't know anything about Sarah's murder or this Petty Officer Sanders. I think we're done here."

Gibbs ignored Mrs. Mills' outburst and turned to the Captain. "Do you know where the Commander is? And you better not lie to me."

"I swear. I have no idea where he is. He was supposed to report at 0700, but he never showed up for work. The last time I saw him was last night when we were leaving work. He seemed fine."

"You had better be telling the truth." Gibbs stood and headed for the door. It was time to find the Commander and get some answers.


	5. Chapter 5

"You live here all by yourself." Travis walked into Tony's apartment and surveyed his new surroundings.

"Yea, just me and my DVDs." Tony closed the door and set his stuff down. It wasn't often that his guests were male, yet alone ten years old. He had thought that volunteering to look after Travis was a good idea, but now he was having second thoughts. Gibbs hadn't wanted to send Travis home in case the Commander decided to return. Ziva and McGee were staking out the place at the moment. The problem now was that Tony had no idea what to do with a ten year old.

"Sweet. The ladies must really love this. I can't wait till I get my own place. Living with your dad and your nanny really cramps your style if you know what I mean."

Tony smirked. "Yea I hear that." His stomach's growl suddenly gave him an idea of how to spend their night. "Travis, what do you say to pizza and a movie?"

"I say that I hope the delivery person is a girl…uh, woman." He corrected, wanting to sound more grown up.

Tony ruffled his hair and went to grab the phone in the kitchen. "Go pick out a movie kid and I'll order the pizza.

Soon enough they were settled down on the couch with a pepperoni pizza and a good western. "You've got some good taste kiddo. _High Noon_ is a classic and Gary Cooper is amazing as he stands alone fighting for the town that abandons him."

"Yea, the only problem is he turns in his badge for a girl."

"Some girls are worth it." Tony suggested.

"You haven't turned in yours."

"No, but sometimes you gotta keep your badge to save the girl."

"I think you have the right idea, though. Don't tie yourself down to one girl. Too many fish in the sea, you know. Is that why you're not married or have any kids?"

Travis wasn't afraid to say what was on his mind. You had to give the kid props for that. Tony wasn't sure how to respond. If he was honest with himself he would say that he hadn't necessarily planned to still be single at this point in his life. Things had just worked out this way. "I'm waiting for the right girl. Just haven't found her yet."

"You should keep it this way. More room for fun. Wives are no fun."

"Wives are no fun, huh? How would you know that?"

"I hear things. Besides my parents used to fight all the time. I don't want that. I want to be free." Travis was tired of people telling him what to do. His father was never around, yet he wanted to control everything Travis did. He wasn't going to grow up and get a wife who would want to control him too.

"Well Travis, I think if you find the right girl, you won't mind giving up your freedom." Tony wasn't even sure he believed what he was saying. He certainly hadn't wanted to give up his own freedom. The closest he had ever gotten was with Jeanne and that experience had scared him enough to put him off commitment for a long time.

"Maybe." Travis went back to watching the movie and Tony was relieved to drop the subject. It wasn't a surprise to anyone that Tony was afraid of commitment, but deep down he had always assumed if he met the right girl that his fears would suddenly disappear. Now he thought about it, he wasn't so sure that was the case. What if he missed the right girl because he was afraid to give it a chance?

"My mom loved old movies. She always said that they just don't make people like they used to." Travis' mood had suddenly turned introspective.

"You know my mom did too. Although I think she just liked looking at all the handsome old movie stars."

_"Baby boy, you have all the charm of Gene Kelly or Clark Gable. Maybe one day you'll be a leading man just like them."_

"It's not fair. It's not fair that my dad is out there getting to do whatever he wants, while my mom…she…she isn't here…" Travis' eyes shone with tears. The anger swelled up inside him at the injustice of it all.

"_It isn't fair. We shouldn't have left her all alone. Why did this happen to her and not you?"_

"It's ok to be upset Travis. It isn't fair. But maybe your dad is feeling the same way. Sometimes adults are bad at talking about things especially with kids."

_"You don't even care that she's gone. You act like she never existed."_

"If he is, he should at least try. He should at least act like he cares about something other than work."

_A cold April morning, watching her descend into the ground, never to return. Her face frozen into a cold smile, so unlike the one she wore in life. A rough hand grips his shoulder, holding him back from reaching out to her._

"You're right, he should. But if you can't talk to him, you can always come talk to me. Anytime. I know what it's like not to have any one to talk to."

"Thanks Tony." Travis settled back down and was soon nodding off, his head bobbing up and down as he fought to stay awake.

Tony barely registered the rest of the movie. He watched Travis, suddenly feeling as if he was looking at a mirror into his past. He had spent so much time and energy avoiding thinking about his mother, now every time he looked at Travis it was all he could think about. He saw himself reflected in this kid. This kid struggling to come to terms, and having no one to help him make sense of things. A dad who was absent. He wished there was something more he could do to help Travis.

* * *

McGee rubbed his hands together, trying desperately to bring some warmth into his numb fingers. It was turning out to be a chilly spring night, and he and Ziva were stuck waiting to see if the Commander turned up.

"I can't believe Tony actually volunteered to watch Travis. It's so not like him. What's even more unbelievable is that Gibbs actually let him."

"Yes, something is bothering Tony though. He is acting oddly about this case." Ziva still couldn't figure out what had happened to her prank-happy partner. She knew he was keeping something from her, and she was driving herself crazy trying to figure it out.

"Maybe DiNozzo was just looking to escape a night in the cold. It's freezing out here." McGee blew into his hands, hoping his warm breath would bring some feeling back into them.

"No, he probably wanted to escape spending the night with me because he knows I would have snaked the answer out of him eventually."

"I think you mean wormed, Ziva."

"Whatever. He is being weird. Even Gibbs has noticed."

"Something is definitely up, but good luck trying to get him to talk about it." McGee was confused about Tony's behavior, especially concerning his prank from earlier, but he wasn't concerned like Gibbs or Ziva. Ziva had been obsessing about it the entire time they had spent staked out in front of Becker's house.

"I do not need luck. I am a Mossad trained assassin. I will get it out of him."

* * *

The next morning Gibbs entered Abby's lab ready to get some hard evidence on Commander Becker.

"Abs, what d'ya got for me?"

"Gibbs! I'm going through Petty Officer Sanders' computer as well as Commander Becker's and it's a pretty interesting read so far." Abby jumped up as Gibbs sailed into the room reaching out to grab her Cafpow.

Gibbs pulled it away from her. "Not until I hear what's on the computers."

Abby's smile turned into a pout, but she knew the fastest way to a Cafpow was to tell Gibbs what he wanted to know. "Ok so Sanders computer is completely encrypted. I'm trying to get into it, but I may need McGee to help me. It does seem odd that he would go to so much trouble to hide what is on his computer if he is innocent. Which begs the question, what did he have to hide?"

"And the answer is?"

"He was the one who was selling secrets!" Abby proudly displayed her findings on the plasma screen. "The evidence for that is on Commander Becker's computer. It turns out that since his wife died he has been doing some digging. At first it looks like he suspected his wife of being involved, but later he found evidence that Sanders was the one committing treason. Sanders was setting up Sarah Becker to take the fall, by basically making it look like she was the one who was accessing classified information, when he was the one really doing it. Sarah Becker found out and confronted Sanders. Commander Becker believes that Sanders is the one who killed his wife because she was the only one who knew the truth about what he was up to."

"Well that may prove Becker didn't kill his wife, but that provides us with a pretty good motive for Sanders' murder. Do we know what he was selling and who he was selling it to?"

"Oh yea. And it's not good Gibbs. It looks like he was selling anything and everything he could get his hands on. He accessed fleet movements, battle plans, satellite data, information provided by informants in the Middle East. The problem is I have no idea who he was selling it to, and neither does Commander Becker. I may be able to find out once I get into Sanders' computer. I'm also trying to backtrace that offshore account that was paying Sanders off every month to see if it will lead us to who the buyer was."

"Abby I need you to find out who he was selling the info to."

"Gibbs I'm trying…."

"You have one hour." Gibbs turned to leave.

"Wait, I have more. I also ran the second blood sample on the knife and …" Abby tapped her keyboard and up popped a picture of Sarah Becker. "It is a match for Lieutenant Becker."

"So Sanders kills Sarah Becker with his knife and then is killed with his own knife." The pieces of the puzzle finally looked to be coming together. "Was Sanders right-handed?"

"Why yes he was!" Abby had made sure to check, knowing that Gibbs would be sure to ask.

"Good work, Abs." Gibbs leaned in and gave his forensic scientist a kiss on the cheek and placed her Cafpow on her desk. Abby picked it up and started sucking down her favorite drink, proud of her work. Then she realized her hour was already ticking away and got back to work on the double.

* * *

"Hey Boss! I think I may have found a way to track down Commander Becker." DiNozzo was ready and waiting for Gibbs as he exited the elevators. He had found a promising lead and he wanted to jump on it quickly.

"What's that DiNozzo? And where's Travis?"

"He's with Ducky. Anyway, I started thinking about what _my_ father was doing all those times he was absent when I was a kid or more importantly….who."

"So you think the Commander is with a woman."

"Not just any woman." Tony picked up the remote and popped up a picture onto the plasma screen, a picture of Travis' nanny Elena. "I pulled up Becker's and Elena's credit card and cell histories. They show that they spent a lot of time in each other's very near company."

McGee took this moment to make an observation. "Doesn't the nanny live with them? How do you know they just weren't together because of Travis?"

"I don't think Travis was with them when they were having a romantic weekend together at the Three Rivers Casino a couple of weeks ago. Where they paid for champagne, chocolate covered strawberries and some adult entertainment." Tony popped this up onto the screen.

"If they were having a relationship, why hide it? Becker's wife died two years ago." Ziva questioned next.

"Maybe they were trying to keep it from Travis, Zee-vah."

"Or maybe they killed Sarah Becker so they could be together. DiNozzo, how does this tell me where the Commander is?"

"Right boss. Last night Elena stayed at a hotel and paid with her credit card. The hotel is the Leisure Inn in Annandale, Virginia. I called and talked to the manager, he says that the nanny checked in with a handsome blonde man at ten o'clock last night."

"McGee can you pull up her cell." Gibbs barked and McGee hurried over to his computer to find Elena.

"Got it boss. Her cell is on. She is still at the hotel."

"Grab your gear. Let's go."


	6. Chapter 6

The wheels on the Charger screeched to a halt as Gibbs slammed on the breaks in front of the Leisure Inn motel. His team jumped out, weapons ready and headed for room 215 where there suspect was supposed to be. They reached the door and pounded on it.

Gibbs barked, "NCIS. Open up Commander Becker." They got no response. Gibbs pulled out the key he had gotten from the front desk and slowly opened the door to the room. He swept in with Ziva covering his advance. The room was empty. McGee came in next and checked the closet to the left. It was empty. Suddenly a noise sounded from the bathroom. They all trained their guns on the door.

Elena, the nanny, came out of the bathroom dressed in only a towel and saw the guns leveled at her and let out a hair-raising scream.

Once Elena had calmed down Gibbs had her sit on the bed. He had been unwilling to let her have time to dress. He wanted to find out where Becker was and if he was still close before he had a chance to get away.

"Where's Becker?" He shouted at her in impatience.

"Greg's innocent. He didn't kill anyone." Elena seemed to be taking the obstinate approach.

"Where is he?" Gibbs was done playing around.

Tony had been outside watching for any sign of the Commander, when he spotted him coming back from the ice machine. "Boss, he's out here. I got him." He yelled into the room to let Gibbs know and took off after him.

Tony's legs pumped beneath him as he raced around the corner of the motel trying to catch up with Becker. He was getting closer but the Commander was still a good way in front of him.

_Who would do this? Who would want to hurt her? Everyone loved her?_

Becker knocked over a trash can to impede Tony's path, but he was able to jump over it and keep running. They turned another corner and entered an alley, one that ended in a dead end. Tony pointed his gun at Becker. "Stop. Hands up. It's over Becker."

_It made no sense. Her death haunted him, causing his mind to spin in endless circles._

As he inched forward cautiously, Tony could see Becker's eyes dart around hoping to find some means of escape. "There's nowhere to run. Give it up."

_They were evil. The men who killed her. He saw it in their eyes._

Tony reached for his handcuffs and as he did, Becker attacked. Becker pushed his arm up forcing the shot he had fired up into the air. He twisted Tony's wrist causing him to loosen his hold on his weapon, and stepped towards him to give him a sharp blow to the stomach. Tony was pissed that he let this guy get the drop on him, but he was having trouble breathing right now, so that took precedence.

_They were untouchable. What could he do? She deserved better._

Tony doubled over, the wind knocked out of him, but he wasn't about to give up this fight. He pushed back at Becker forcing him up against the wall of the alley and wrenching his arm free. His gun went flying across the alley and skidded to a stop 20 feet away.

_How could he give up? He was only one person. He didn't have the strength to keep fighting._

Tony delivered a punch to Becker's right cheek, as Becker kicked Tony in the shins. Becker pushed back and sent them both sprawling onto the concrete. Tony could feel his anger boil up as he watched Becker scramble for his gun.

_He hated himself for giving up, letting them slip away. _

Tony grabbed at Becker's leg and arm, desperately trying to keep him from the gun. Becker turned around and popped Tony in the eye. Tony could feel blood begin to trickle down his eyebrow, running down his cheek. He had a moment to wonder where the hell his backup was, but realized that he couldn't waste time with inaction. With a sudden burst of strength he grabbed the Commander and pinned him down, punching him over and over in the face. Blood was pouring from Becker's nose as he struggled with Tony on the ground.

_One day. He would get revenge. They would pay for what they did._

"Tony. Tony! Tony!" Ziva had finally caught up with them. She was screaming at DiNozzo to stop. He wouldn't seem to listen to her. She stared at him, frozen, unsure how to get him to stop.

Gibbs ran up behind Ziva as she continued to yell at Tony. He inched toward Tony. "Hey, DiNozzo!" Gibbs yell seemed to do the trick. He was able to penetrate into Tony's brain.

Almost as if coming out of a trance, Tony looked up at his boss, unsure of what had happened. He looked down at Becker and instantly felt sick. He stood up and walked over to grab his gun. Ziva watched him, unsure what to make of his behavior.

Gibbs hauled Commander Becker to his feet and turned him around to put cuffs on him. "DiNozzo, are you ok?" Gibbs was alarmed now. His senior agent didn't lose control like this.

"Yea, boss. I'm sorry…I…" Tony stuttered, still trying to get his bearings.

Ziva wanted to say something to Tony, but didn't know where to start. She could see the muscle in his face jump as he clenched down on his jaw, anger clearly etched all over his face. She decided it was safer to say nothing, so the group silently headed back to the car.

McGee was waiting at the car with a hastily dressed Elena. He took one look at Tony and Becker and began to sputter. "Boss, what the heck happened?"

"Get in the car McGee. You're driving." Gibbs tossed him the keys and they all headed back to the Navy yard in a tense silence.

* * *

"Gibbs, I do not think it is a good idea to let Tony interrogate Commander Becker." Ziva was worried about Tony murdering him during the interrogation.

"Yea, well that's why I'll be in there with him."

"Maybe he should watch from observation."

"Ziva, this is not up for discussion. Get in there and interrogate the nanny. I'll handle DiNozzo." Gibbs had enough to deal with; he didn't need Ziva second guessing him.

Ziva headed in to talk to Elena. Gibbs was headed for Interrogation 2 to get the truth out of Becker, when Vance walked up.

"Gibbs, we need to find out who the buyer is. SecNav is breathing down my neck here."

"I know Leon."

"This whole mess is getting worse by the second. Ms. Scuito told me what information was accessed. If this stuff gets into the wrong hands, we're going to have one hell of a firestorm raining down on our heads."

"Leon, will you let me do my job? I'm going to get to the bottom of this."

"You better Gibbs."

* * *

"You don't understand. Greg is a good person. He would never kill anybody. This is all a mistake." Elena had decided to stick by her man and was putting Ziva's patience to the test.

"So when you told us you had no idea where Commander Becker was, that was a mistake also?"

"I….I didn't know where he was at the time. He called me later and told me where he was." Elena was now backpedalling.

"And you just forgot to give us a call I suppose." Ziva open the file folder in front of her and picked up some pictures to show Elena. "I think that you and Commander Becker had this worked all out from the start. This has all been an elaborate plan to kill Sarah Becker so you two could be together, is it not?" Ziva slammed downed the pictures of Joel Sanders' and Sarah Becker's crime scenes. Elena jumped at each one, and tears began flowing down her cheeks.

"No. No. You have it all wrong. Greg and I…we fell in love, yes, but it was after Sarah…I loved Sarah. I would never have hurt her."

"Tell me why I should believe you."

"After Sarah died, Greg was distraught. All he could think about was finding out who killed her and getting revenge. He's spent the last two years trying to figure out what happened. A few months ago he finally found out that Petty Officer Sanders was setting Sarah up."

"So he decided to get revenge by killing the Petty Officer."

"No. Yes. I mean, he was going to confront him, but when he got there yesterday…he was already dead."

"He was dead when you got there." Tony stared incredulously at Commander Becker, unwilling to believe the story he was weaving.

Commander Becker's face covered in bruises and scrapes looked at the agent sitting across from him willing him to believe what he was telling him. "Yes. I admit I went there to confront him about Sarah's murder. But when I got there he was already dead. I swear."

"You swear. You swear. Well I guess we'll just have to believe you because you have been acting so innocently up till now." Tony's anger was pushing up again, but he determinately pushed it back down. He was not going to blow this interrogation too. Gibbs stood behind him watching his every move, which didn't help to calm him. "So why did you run before if you are so innocent?"

"I knew NCIS was looking for me, but I had to find a way to prove to you that I was innocent. Look I know what this looks like, but I didn't do this." Commander Becker was beginning to look more and more defeated. He couldn't see a way to prove to these agents that he hadn't killed Sanders.

"And shacking up with your nanny, is that supposed to prove your innocence?"

"Elena and I…I don't know. It just happened. She was there for me after Sarah died. I didn't mean for it, but…"

"Really because what I think is that you set this all up. You wanted to get rid of your wife so you could play house with your 22 year old nanny. So you came up with a neat way to get rid of her. What did Sanders find out? Did he realize you were selling Navy secrets to make a little extra dough for your romantic weekend getaways?"

"No. Sanders was the one selling secrets. He tried to frame Sarah. She figured out what he was up to. That's why he killed her. I'm telling you the truth. Look if you check my laptop the evidence is all there."

"We have your laptop. But evidence can be manufactured. Isn't it convenient that the person you claim is responsible is now dead and can't defend himself? We have a witness. He saw you leaving Sanders apartment just after the time of death."

"I told you. I went there and he was already dead."

Gibbs decided it was time to step in. "Who was Sanders selling too?"

Commander Becker hoped he finally had someone on his side. Someone who believed his story. "He was getting paid through an offshore account in the Caymans. I was trying to trace it but I haven't cracked it yet. I don't know who the buyer was."

"Commander if you want us to believe your story, you're going to have to give us something." Gibbs gut told him there was still some piece they were missing, but he couldn't figure it out.

Just then, the door opened and Ziva poked her head in. Three heads turned to look at her. Tony's looked furious. The Commander's was defeated. And Gibbs just looked ticked off.

"Sorry Gibbs. But there's something you need to hear." Gibbs and Tony headed out into the hall and met a very anxious forensic scientist bouncing up and down on her toes.

"Gibbs. Gibbs. I cracked Sanders' encryption. Well McGee and I cracked it, but we did it." Abby wore a smile of triumphant glee on her face. Gibbs look told her she should continue with her revelation. "Sanders was definitely guilty as sin. It looks like he was selling the info to anyone who would buy. Everything went to the highest bidder. But that's not the best part." Abby's hands flailed as she delivered her bombshell to Gibbs. "Sanders was not working alone. He had a partner. And that partner was none other than Commander Becker's C.O., Captain Jonathan Mills."

* * *

The Mills house was a flurry of activity as Team Gibbs pulled into the driveway. Jonathan Mills was loading the car as his wife attempted to round up the children.

"Going somewhere?" Gibbs drawled from behind them.

"Agent Gibbs." Captain Mills eyes crossed over Gibbs and his agents. He looked like a deer caught in the headlights of an oncoming semi, unsure which way to run. "Just a little family vacation."

"In the middle of the workweek?" Gibbs watched as Mrs. Mills herded her children back into the house.

Captain Mills was a cornered man with nowhere to run, but he decided to try anyway. He took off towards the woods which lay to the left of the driveway. Tony stepped in front of him and cut him off, leveling his gun at the Captain's heart. "Don't make me shoot you in front of your wife and kids."

Mills stopped short. Gibbs wasn't far behind. He grabbed Mills arms and yanked them behind his back to cuff him. "What did Sanders get greedy? Did he want the money all for himself? So you decided to kill him?"

"Agent Gibbs I don't know what you're doing. My husband has nothing to do with this. He didn't hurt anyone."

"Mrs. Mills, we checked. When you're husband was supposed to be at work yesterday morning he called and said he was late because he was stuck in traffic on 385. There was no traffic at that time yesterday morning." McGee related the results they had dug up on Captain Mills.

"And our eye witness remembers seeing your husband entering Sanders apartment building just before a loud argument was overheard." Ziva had reinterviewed Mr. Petty and he had picked out a picture of the Captain in a lineup.

"Captain Mills, you are under arrest for the murders of Petty Officer Sanders and Lieutenant Sarah Becker. You have the right to…"

"No! Wait." Mrs. Mills was screaming now. All previous composure lost. "My husband was with Greg when Sarah was murdered. Greg will tell you." Mrs. Mills was coming unhinged now.

"You're right Mrs. Mills. Your husband was with Greg at the time of the murder, but you weren't." Tony walked over to her, and glared into her face.

"I was here too."

"Not the whole time. You left to go the grocery store. But the funny thing is your credit card history shows you didn't buy any chips. You actually bought some wet wipes, at a store two blocks from the Becker's house. Why would you go to a store ten minutes away when there is one around the corner?" Tony leaned over her. She backed up, her eyes filling with fear.

"And you are left-handed." Ziva added grabbing her wrist.

"When Greg told you that Sarah was getting suspicious, you got scared. While he was at your house, you left and killed Sarah Becker."

"I…I…no…that bitch got what she deserved. She was going to destroy my family. I couldn't let her do that."

"Rebecca, don't."

"She knew Sanders and you're husband were working together." Gibbs had hit the nail on the head.

"Of course she did. She didn't want to tell Greg because Jon is his best friend. She said she had to make sure before she did that. Well I made sure she never could. I had to protect my husband. I had to protect my children." Mrs. Mills was screaming now, the ravings of a lunatic.

"No, what you did was destroy a family. You not only ruined your own children's life, but there is a little boy who is going to have to grow up without his mother because of you." Tony jerked Rebecca Mills around and slammed the cuffs down on her wrists.


	7. Chapter 7

"So Jon and Sanders were in it together from the beginning." Commander Becker was having a hard time believing his old friends could do such a thing.

"Sarah found out, so Rebecca killed her. She knew that no one would ever look at her, and you would be her husband's alibi." Tony knew he should apologize for his earlier behavior towards Becker, but he still couldn't let go of his anger towards this man.

"It's just hard to believe. But I owe you. Thank you for finding Sarah's killer. And thanks for keeping my son safe, even if he thought I had killed someone." Becker's arm lay around his son's shoulders. He reached a hand out to shake Gibbs hand.

"You did say you were going to kill that man on the phone." Travis was quick to point out.

"Yes well, I was very angry, and I thought that he had killed your mother."

"That doesn't give you the right to kill someone." Travis was still holding a lot of hostility towards his father. Finding out his father was innocent had not relieved any of it.

"Can I talk to Travis for a minute?" Tony asked Commander Becker.

"Sure."

Tony took Travis over to his desk and sat him down. He knelt down in front of him. "Travis, do you remember what I told you about my mom?"

"She died when you were eight too."

"Yes, except she was murdered like your mom. My dad and I had gone on a fishing trip in North Carolina. We had just got back. My dad went straight to his office to check on some business. I went upstairs to tell my mom about the fish I had caught." Tony paused, cleared his throat. He had never told anyone this story. He had never even said these words out loud. "When I got to her room, I knew something bad had happened, just like you did. I found her in the bathroom."

"Did they catch the guys who did it?'

"No. The police couldn't figure it out."

"Is that why you became a cop?"

Tony couldn't help a small smile. This kid was more insightful than most adults. "Yes. It is. When I became a cop I tried to find my mom's killer."

"Did you?"

"I did. They were very bad men that my father used to work with. My mom was worried about him so she went to the police, but the bad men didn't like that, so…" He was unsure how to go on.

"They killed her."

"Yes."

"Both our moms died because they were trying to do the right thing."

"That's right Travis. The thing is that for a long time I blamed my father for what happened. But the truth is, it wasn't his fault. Just like it isn't your dad's fault that your mom died. Do you understand?"

"I think so." Travis' lips quivered, and a tear streaked down his cheek.

"Don't waste your life being mad at your dad for something he didn't do. He may not have been the best dad this past two years, but he's been trying to find out who hurt your mom. He misses her just like you do."

Tony turned and looked at Becker standing right behind him. He met his eyes. "You still have the chance to know your son. To be there for him. He's an amazing kid. Don't waste that opportunity. You don't get a second chance. He already lost his mother. Make sure he doesn't lose his father too." Tony stood up and as he did Commander Becker knelt down to speak to his son.

"Travis, I've done a really bad job at being a dad and I'm sorry for that. You deserve better and I promise I'm going to do better from now on."

"I'm sorry too Dad." Tears continued to fall down his face.

"For what?"

"For saying that you killed someone."

Commander Becker smiled at his son. "Don't worry about it kiddo." He reached out and grabbed his son into a big bear hug, silently promising himself and his late wife that he would do right by their son.

Ziva and McGee watched this tearful reunion. McGee leaned closer to Ziva who was standing next to his desk. "Did you know that about Tony's mom?"

"I knew she had died when he was eight, but I had no idea that she was murdered. Do you think Gibbs knew?"

"He didn't." Gibbs whispered from behind them. They all looked over at Tony, seeing him in a new light, each wondering what this incident had done to Tony to shape him into the man standing before them today.

* * *

Later that night Tony sat typing up his report at his desk, the only one left in the squadroom.

"Hey DiNozzo. What are you still doing here?"

"Just finishing up these reports boss." Tony had known this was coming but he was still hoping to avoid it. At least Gibbs was always a man of few words. "I know how you feel about apologies Gibbs, but I'm sorry I didn't tell you about my mom. I just…"

"I know." Gibbs cut him off.

"It was a long time ago, and I don't want to live in the past."

"DiNozzo, you don't have to explain it me."

"The truth is I became a cop so I could find out what happened."

"What did you find?"

"My dad was doing business with some mob bosses. He infringed a little too much on their territory, and they decided to send him a message."

"Your mother."

"Yea. Back-off. So he did. They were so well connected, I couldn't get near them. No cop could. They are probably grandfathers now, sitting around getting fat while their grandsons do the heavy lifting."

"You gonna be alright? I don't need you beating up any more of my suspects."

"I just don't want this to be what people see when they look at me. After it happened, that's all anyone could see, the poor little boy who found his dead mother. All I could see was their pity. I don't want that."

"Don't worry DiNozzo, no one here is going to treat you any different." Gibbs gave him a soft tap to the head.

"Thanks boss." Tony smiled and ran a hand over the back of his head.

"Now go home."

* * *

Tony sat on his couch, sipping his beer, trying to finish _High Noon_. Even though he had lived alone for most of his adult life, it seemed so quiet now without Travis. He couldn't make his mind concentrate and was about to turn off the movie when he heard a knock on his door. Tony sighed and heaved himself up off the couch.

He swung the door open, and his eyebrows shot up. He wasn't expecting this. Ziva David stood in the hallway of his apartment building.

"I know deep down in your strange, twisted mind, you think you have a right to know everybody's business, but I'm not going to talk to you about this. Not tonight. I'm tired Ziva, and I just can't deal with you right now."

Ziva stood there, staring at him, doing that thing where it felt like he was being x-rayed. Just when he was starting to get angry, she took a step towards him. "Well that is good because I did not come here to talk." Ziva placed her hands on his chest and ran them up his shoulders. She stepped closer, pushing her body up against his. Her lips touched his, and he suddenly forgot his anger.

Tony grabbed her head and deepened the kiss. When they came up for air again, they were both breathing heavy.

"Mmm, I think we should not talk more often." Tony smiled down at Ziva as he pulled her into his apartment and pushed the door closed behind them.


	8. Chapter 8

**Warning: Since some people have expressed concerns to me about the direction of the story I wanted to warn everyone that there will be Tony/Ziva stuff ahead. If you don't like this, you may want to stop reading now. You will still have gotten a full story, because the first seven chapters are a complete case story by themselves. **

**Thanks to everyone who read the first 7 chapters of the fic. I originally was going to end it there, but part of it still seemed unfinished to me. So I have gone back and forth for weeks on whether I would add a second part to this story and I finally made up my mind. I assume you can guess that I decided to continue the story. Anyway, I made myself sit down and outline exactly what I wanted the second part of this story to be, so I should be able to be more focused than I have been. However, I wrote the first seven chapters of this before I posted anything. So right now I just have this chapter done and the outline. I will challenge myself to regularly keep posting updates. I tend to write in long bursts and then not at all for a few days. Ok. I think that's enought rambling. I watched a great NCIS marathon today so that provided a lot of inspiration, clearly since this chapter is like twice as long as my other chapters. Hopefully my muse will keep flowing. Thank you in advance to anyone who reads or reviews. I love ya for it!**

**I don't own NCIS, but I would love to!**

* * *

His hands bore the scars of the earlier alley fight. She reached down and brushed her fingers over the cuts and bruises that formed on his knuckles. Throughout this exploration, he slept soundly next to her, his face also sporting a jagged cut along the ridge of his eyebrow. Her eyes traveled to that cut, examining the lines of his face.

Ziva sighed, her head filled with too many contradictory thoughts. Part of her wanted to wake him and wrestle the truth out of him, and the other part just wanted to get up and leave. Run. That's what she did best. Whenever things got too personal, intimate, close, Ziva would head for the hills. It didn't make sense, that she could run into a building with a bomb, but she was forever running away from relationships.

To be honest, she didn't even know why she had come to his apartment last night. She had wanted to comfort him. Watching him tell Travis about his mom touched something inside her. Tony's face, it had looked different. She couldn't quite put her finger on it, but she had seen a part of himself that he had kept hidden for so long. It was almost like she had seen the boy he had been at eight when he had found his mother murdered in the bathtub. He was not the carefree man she had grown to know as her partner. Deep down she had always known there was more to him, a side he hid from the world. The humor used as a defense mechanism to keep people away. Keep them from finding out his secrets. She knew that they were alike in that way. They built walls to keep others from getting too close.

But the truth was out. Tony's mother had been murdered. And he had to live with that every day. Was there anything Ziva could really do to help him? Especially if he was not willing to talk to her about it. She began to slide out of the bed, deciding to give in to the instinct to flee. Just as her toe hit the ground, his hand reached out and wrapped around her wrist stopping her progress.

"Don't." Tony sat up and stared into Ziva's large brown eyes, sensing her urge to escape. He knew that last night, he had not been very good company. But she had been silent, let him process in his own way. She hadn't poked or prodded, hadn't asked him a million questions. In short she had not been Ziva, and he was thankful for that. It wasn't that he didn't want to tell her about it. Speaking about his mother was like speaking in different tongues. Tony had never put words to the way it had torn apart his childhood. Trying to now seemed foreign and difficult.

Ziva sat frozen, his warm hand wrapped around her small wrist. She looked down at it, and he let go of her, testing her. He waited, unsure how to go on, waiting for her to turn and bolt. Their relationship, had always been fraught with this tension. Always frozen. Both afraid to take a step forward. How much of their lives did they spend in fear?

In the end she chose to stay, sliding back into the bed with him. She laid her head on his chest and listened to his heart beat. They were both silent enjoying the warmth of the moment, both knowing it would have to end too soon.

"Last night. That was the first time I…that was... I haven't talked about my mom since I was eight. I just don't know how."

"Tony. I understand. You do not have to tell me anything if you do not want to."

"No. I want to." He paused unsure how to go on. These past few days he had relived his mother's death over and over again. Thoughts and images he had suppressed for years had floated into his consciousness unwillingly. He fought for the words to explain it to her, without having to experience all that pain and anger again.

Tony had been silent for so long that she wasn't sure he would continue. She held her breath and silently waited for him to go on. She wanted to hear this, but knew this was not something she could drag out of him.

Finally he found a place to begin. "I was so angry afterwards. Senior was so cold about the whole thing, well you've seen how he is. He's even worse than me when it comes to avoidance. Everyone else treated me like I was made of glass. Like I would break if they brought up her name."

"What was her name?"

"Caroline."

"That is beautiful. Do you have a picture of her?" Ziva had tried to rein in her curiosity, but the question had slipped out of her mouth before she could stop herself.

"Uh, yea. In the top drawer there, next to you." Ziva sat up and opened the drawer pulling out a stack of old photos. On top there was one of a beautiful young woman with curly brown hair and beautiful large brown eyes. In the woman's lap sat a young boy who looked no older than 5 years old. His green eyes sparkled up at her in laughter, as her arms protectively wrapped around his small body. Ziva couldn't help but feel a lump in her throat thinking of that little boy. She shook her head feeling ridiculous at such sentimentality.

Tony took the photo from her and stared at it. "She was very beautiful. And she looks like she loved you very much Tony."

Tony couldn't take his eyes off the picture, if only to prevent Ziva from seeing the way his eyes had glazed over. "It was so different without her in the house. Before it had always seemed so warm and full of happiness. She was always laughing. Afterwards it was just a huge cold, silent house. I was relieved when Senior sent me away to boarding school. I hated going back there."

Ziva rested her hand on his arm, trying to offer some support. Beneath her fingers she could feel the muscles in his forearm tight with tension. He was silent again, and she wondered if that was all she could hope to get out of him. But after a while he continued.

"Senior set the example and I followed it. We never talked about it, and I just got angrier and angrier, with him, with the cops who gave up on the case, with everyone in general. I was determined to find out who would hurt her and why. When I did, there was nothing I could do…I couldn't touch them."

"Why not?"

"They were the most untouchable mob bosses in New York, and my father had to go and piss them off. I hated him for that. Now I realize that he may have hated himself even more."

Ziva was now running her hands up and down his arm and back, trying to offer what comfort she could. She could feel tremors run through his body. She wished there was something she could do to relieve his tension.

"Thank you." His gratitude shocked Ziva, who felt she was being utterly useless at the moment.

"For what?" She was confused.

"For listening. Not pushing. Just being here." He turned his head and his eyes met hers. Now it was her turn to feel as if she were being x-rayed. Ziva suddenly realized they had taken their relationship to a much deeper level without even noticing. They both had the ability to have a physical relationship, without the mess of emotions. But somehow they had just crossed a line, one she wasn't sure they could go back from. Something within her tensed and she had the urge to run again. His gaze was the only thing keeping here anchored to this moment.

Ziva swallowed, unsure what to do. She watched as his face got closer and closer. Tony's hand slid up her back, causing her to shiver. She couldn't help but feel trails of pleasure streaking through her body. Her pulse quickened and she suddenly felt incredibly warm. Tony wrapped his fingers around the base of her skull, tilting her head up to him. Ziva knew in that second that she was powerless to stop this. Whatever this thing was that was happening between them. It was a living, growing thing. Organic. It had been building since the day they met. And they were both in its grasp.

Tony's lips met hers in a sweet and tentative way, but quickly the kiss turned into a hungry quest for passion. Ziva tasted so sweet and warm, her scent swirling around him, he breathed her in deep, trying to hold onto that part of her. She clung to him, trying to hold onto her sanity, while slowly losing her grip on reality. Her brain became fuzzy with need and desire and the feel of his large body pressing down on hers was the only thing she could think about. Their hands had minds of their own, running over each other's bodies searching out their most intimate and sensitive areas.

Riiinnnggg. Rrrriiinnng. Rrrrinnnngg. Tony's phone suddenly went off on his nightstand next to Ziva's head. They jumped apart as if burned. Tony grabbed the phone and barked into it.

"What?" Tony was having a hard time reining in all the emotions and desire that was coursing through his body at the moment. "Oh, sorry boss. Yea. I'll be there. Fast as I can."

Tony hung up, cursing Gibbs sixth sense. He was positive he somehow knew what Ziva and him had just been up to. Tony looked down at her with a grimace on his face to see her giggling up at him. "What the hell is so funny?"

"Nothing. Nothing. It's just….I mean, Gibbs…" She couldn't even get it out, she was laughing so hard. Tony failed to see the hilarity in the situation. "Of course he would know just the time to call."

"I still don't see how that's funny."

Ziva felt like a teenager caught making out with her boyfriend by her father. She felt like a fourteen year old. It was all so absurd that it was funny, in a certain way. She just couldn't find a way to explain that to Tony. He was still glaring at her when she heard her phone ringing from her bag that she had dropped just inside the doorway. Ziva wiggled her way out from under him and ran to answer her phone.

"Yes? Oh hello Gibbs. Yes, I will be there right away." She hung up with Gibbs and made her way back into Tony's room. He was laying there with his arm across his eyes. "We should get moving before Gibbs gets angry."

Tony's arm dropped to his side and he stared up at her, wondering how she could be so unaffected by what had just happened between them. But it seemed that whatever spell that had hung over them before had been broken by Gibbs' call. He sat up and continued to rake his eyes over her features.

"You go ahead. I have to go take a cold shower, or there is no way I am going to get through the rest of this day."

Ziva smiled at this and bent down to give him a small peck on the mouth. With that she turned and was gone. It had felt so natural, so right, so intimate. It scared the hell out of them both.

* * *

"You should have seen his face, Abs. It was just so, so…so unlike Tony." McGee sat with Abby in her lab. Gibbs had ordered them both in but had yet to tell them why. Abby was demanding to know everything she had missed the night before when Tony had revealed his big secret to the world.

"Aw, poor Tony. I can just imagine his little eight year old self, all sweet and goofy, and to have that happen to him…It's just awful." Abby was so upset she had missed the big revelation that she had dragged McGee down to her lab the first chance she got and had him tell her the whole thing word for word.

"It sure explains a lot though. Like his deep-seeded issues with women and commitment. Can you imagine what Tony would be like if his mom never died?"

"Well, he wouldn't be Tony. Now would he McGee?" Abby scoffed at McGee's stupid suggestion. She did not believe in what-ifs. There was only what happened and how you handled it. "Do you think we should do something for him?" Abby felt the need to comfort Tony somehow, although that seemed absurd with his mother's death so long ago.

"I don't think he wants people to make a fuss about it, Abs. It's probably best if you just don't mention it."

"I can't do that McGee." Abby's need to meddle grew steadily as she and McGee sat discussing Tony. She just wanted to give him a hug. She couldn't help thinking of him as a little boy all scared and alone.

"Abby." McGee warned. "Promise me you won't do anything." He looked down at her with the look of a stern father warning his daughter from sticking her hand in the cookie jar.

"I can't do that McGee." Abby got up and walked over to her desk, avoiding McGee's advice and accusatory stare.

"Abby."

"Sorry McGee. I have to get back to work. I'm busy."

"Abby we don't even have a case yet. You don't have anything to do."

"I have other stuff to work on. You're not the only ones working cases here."

"Whatever Abby, just leave Tony alone." McGee was worried she had not heard a word he said.

"Why do you care so much McGee?" Abby countered, trying to throw him off.

"Because if you piss him off, he's going to take it out on me." McGee protested.

"Yea, sure. That's the reason," sarcasm laced Abby's voice as she gently shooed McGee from her lab. She had work to do alright, getting Tony's surprise ready. With McGee safely in the elevator she set to work.

* * *

Director Vance sat in his office staring off into space, wondering just how deep their latest breach went. From the intel they got off Captain Jonathan Mills it looked like they were treading water with the sharks and it was no longer a question of if they would get bit, but when. The Secretary of the Navy had already ripped him apart for not finding this breach earlier, and now it was time to get on top of this thing before they had another 9/11 on their hands.

Gibbs entered his office, with that look on his face. That look that Vance hated. The one that said I don't have time to be wasting talking to you. Who did Gibbs think he was to give that look to the director of NCIS?

"Gibbs. I've got a mission for your team."

"Yea, Leon. I got that when you had me call them in twenty minutes ago. What do you want us to do?" Gibbs was tired of this tension that existed between him and Vance, but he couldn't quite shake the feeling that Vance still had secrets. He could feel in his gut that there were more skeletons in Vance's closet, and he didn't want his team to have to pay the price for them.

"Captain Mills cut a deal. He's spilling all his dirty little secrets. He was planning to meet with a buyer later today to sell him some very sensitive information."

"What kind of sensitive information, Leon?" Gibbs drawled.

Vance felt a headache forming between his eyes. Only the special kind of headache Agent Gibbs could give him when he was acting like an arrogant son of a bitch. "That's need to know. And you don't…"

"Need to know." Gibbs finished. "What do we need to know then, Director?"

"I want you to have Tony and Ziva go undercover as Captain and Mrs. Mills. They'll meet the target and once he's been identified as the buyer, you'll bring him in. Alive. I need a person to interrogate. Not a body."

"Mills doesn't know who the buyer is?"

"Claims they contact him through anonymous emails to set up the meet. Meet's always in person. Mills hands over the drive with the info once his wife has confirmed that the money has been wired to their account." Vance dully wondered if Gibbs team was the right ones for the job. Certainly they could do the job, but maybe after all that had happened they were too close to this one. Vance had a fleeting feeling, one that gave him a foreboding sense about tonight's midnight espionage. "Your team up to this?" he questioned, letting his worries slip into his voice.

"Of course they are Leon." Gibbs too had a bad feeling about this. Mostly because he knew they were purposely being left out of the loop. Whatever this sensitive information was, it was likely to get one of them killed. He didn't like the feeling that they weren't being told everything.

* * *

Gibbs and Vance headed down the stairs to brief the team on their latest mission. Gibbs glanced down at the three faces turned up towards his. They had already had a long week, and it was showing in all of their faces. Unfortunately he didn't think that this latest case was really as closed as they thought it was. He knew that this week had taken a toll on them, especially DiNozzo, and he was worried about how much more they could take before one of them broke.

Team Gibbs was curious to find out why Gibbs and the Director were looking so strained and just what they were doing here on a Saturday morning.

"David, DiNozzo. I've heard that you've pretended to be married before. How would you like to have a recommitment ceremony." Vance suggested.

Tony and Ziva looked at each other confused as to what exactly the director was proposing. Did he want them to pretend to be married again? What exactly did Gibbs know?

"I don't follow."

"You two are going undercover as Captain Jonathan Mills and his wife."

"Uh, boss I don't think that's such a good idea." Tony stuttered out. After their practically marital moment earlier this morning, they had both been acting particularly chilly towards one other.

"Yes, surely no one would believe that we are married." Ziva protested, not wanting to spend any more intimate time with Tony until she figured out what the hell was going on between them.

"That wasn't a suggestion. It was an order." Gibbs barked. He was irritated by Vance and had no patience left for the protestations of his agents.

Tony and Ziva shared another glance, but were effectively shut up by their boss.

Vance was having another ominous feeling about this mission, but he continued. "You are meeting their buyer. This is strictly a pick-up op. No unnecessary force. I want this guy coming into my building alive, not in a body bag. McGee, you and Gibbs will be in the van watching and providing back up. I want eyes and ears on this meet." With that Vance turned and left them to prepare for the particulars of the mission. He stopped at the top of the stairs and watched as they huddled around Gibbs trying to milk him for more information. He couldn't shake the feeling that they were about to walk into a firestorm.

* * *

_1900_. Tony and Ziva sat in a coffee bar waiting to meet their mark. Each shifting uncomfortably with the role they were supposed to be playing.

"Will you stop fidgeting in your chair like that, you look like a five year old that has to go to the restroom?" Ziva hissed at Tony, when he crossed and uncrossed his legs for the seventeenth time.

"I will if you stop staring down everyone who walks by. You're going to scare off our guy." Tony snipped back.

"I'm sorry if I'm doing my job, by scanning the room, but maybe it's because I'm not sure my _husband's_ up to the job." Ziva retaliated.

"What is that supposed to mean?" Tony's eyes narrowed as Ziva's personality became more and more shrewish.

"It means that no one is going to believe that you are a Navy Captain if you keeping slouching like that." Ziva was getting more and more irritated at Tony's behavior by the minute. It was in these moments that she could not reconcile who he was with the man she saw this morning.

Tony straightened up in his chair. "I'm trying to be a Navy Captain who is undercover as a civilian, Sweetcheeks." deliberately using the nickname she despised. He desperately tried to cling to self control and refused to allow her to get under his skin. He knew that's what she wanted and he was going to do his best to keep her from the satisfaction.

In the van, McGee was starting to get tired of their constant bickering back and forth. Not that he wasn't used to it working with them for the last five and a half years, but there was only some much he could take. "You know for two people who claim they can't act married, you're both acting very…"

"Married." Gibbs supplied. "You know the bickering might be good for your cover, but if you two don't shut up I'm going to make you get married for real." McGee chuckled at Gibbs suggestion, just thinking about how long it would take Tony and Ziva to kill each other if they were really married.

Gibbs suggestion had effectively shut Tony and Ziva up, but not the way he had hoped. They were now staring at each other with twin looks of horror covering their faces, causing them to miss their target's entrance. He spotted them however, and made his way to their table.

"Mr. and Mrs. Mills, I presume." The man who sat down with them had a slightly accented voice and the look of an Eastern European.

Tony and Ziva quickly collected themselves, and put on their best disguise. Ziva slipped her arm around Tony's and leaned into him, catching a whiff of his cologne that set her heart racing. She mentally chastised herself for feeling anything and turned her focus on the task in front her. Tony took the lead.

"Here is the account number where you can wire the money." He handed the man a slip of paper with a fake account number.

"What, no foreplay? Is it always all business with him? For your sake, Mrs. Mills, I hope not? You are too lovely for that." He bent down and kissed her free hand. Ziva smiled up at him with a twinkle in her eye. This caused Tony to clench his fists and grow increasingly angry.

"Look, I don't appreciate you coming onto my wife while I'm sitting right here." Tony responded a little too violently.

"I meant no disrespect." The man's smile was like a snake right before he bit you. "You have the drive?"

Ziva pulled the fake drive out of her pocket. Vance hadn't even told them what was on the drive, but they knew the man would want to check. He pulled out a laptop and popped the drive into the USB. He seemed to be satisfied with what he found because next he took the account number and began to transfer the funds. Within a minute he popped out the drive and put his laptop away.

Ziva checked her phone and got a confirmation that the funds had been successfully transferred. She nodded at the man to affirm this.

"It's been a pleasure doing business with you, Mr. and Mrs. Mills. You better hold onto her tight, Mr. Mills, or she just might slip away." Tony wanted to strangle that smug look of the man's face, but he sat still and watched him walk out the door into Gibbs waiting arms.

Tony and Ziva moved to follow behind their target and when they reached the street, they found a deserted sidewalk.

"Where are Gibbs and McGee?" Ziva wondered, her ninja senses tingling. Something was off. She reached for her weapon as Tony did the same.

Tony hurried over to the van and swung open the back door. The van was empty.

"They're not here." He called over to Ziva, his sense of dread growing as they looked around for any sign of Gibbs and McGee. At the corner, they turned into an alley and found them. Two men held guns on Gibbs and McGee, while the third man, the one they'd just met with, trained a gun on them.

They were all frozen in a strange tableau, guns pointed at each other, each trying to figure out how to get out of the situation unscathed. Gibbs gave his agents the barest of signals and with that gunfire ripped through the alleyway. Gibbs and McGee ducked as Tony and Ziva took out the two lackeys. Gibbs tackled the third guy sending him sprawling to the ground. The man spun around, his gun pointed at Gibbs head. That was when Ziva shot him in the head.

The man slumped to the ground, and Gibbs was able to scramble up.

"Well Vance isn't going to like this." Gibbs observed.


	9. Chapter 9

**So this chapter and I fought for a long time today, but it's finally done. I just hope the future chapters flow a little easier. Hope that you enjoy it. Thanks for reading and to everyone who did story alerts!**

**I don't own NCIS, but I would love to!**

**

* * *

**

Tony, McGee and Ziva stood in the bullpen staring up the stairs at Director Vance and Gibbs going toe to toe on the landing outside of MTAC. This normally would be worrisome enough if it weren't for the fact that the two were clearly past caring if anyone could hear or see them anymore. The three younger agents had previously failed to grasp that this mission was of the highest importance, having been left out of the particulars which Vance was now filling Gibbs in on. But now it was painfully obvious that they had just created a major blunder.

"Well Director, maybe if you had let us in on the full implications of the mission, things would have turned out differently." Gibbs' voice practically oozed criticism at Vance.

Vance's blood began to boil as he leered back at Gibbs. Sometimes he wondered if dealing with Gibbs' peculiarities was worth the trouble. This was one time he was seriously considering just firing the whole team and bringing in agents that would actually follow orders. Ones who would have the appropriate amount of fear of him.

"Gibbs, I gave your team simple orders. Do they have some sort of aversion to listening?" Vance was growing steadily angrier, as he felt all the eyes in the building turning towards their argument.

"What would you have had them do Director? Shoot me and McGee instead?" Gibbs was at the end of his patience. If this case was so important, they were just wasting time yelling at each other while the bad guys were still out there. Gibbs would much rather be downstairs barking at his team to get to work than wasting his time up here trying to soothe the Director. What's done is done. Their suspect was dead and there was nothing they could do to change that.

"Who do you think would win in a fight between the Director and Gibbs?" Tony wondered aloud. This fight was turning into quite a bout and he was really wishing they had some popcorn, so they could sit back and enjoy it properly.

"Oh, definitely Gibbs." McGee answered. There was no question in his mind that their fearless leader could take anyone he came up against. In his mind Gibbs was invincible.

"I don't know McGee." Ziva responded. "The Director was a successful boxer. He clearly has the ability to take a hit and keep going."

"Come on. Gibbs was a marine, Zi. Vance wouldn't stand a chance." Tony inserted his own opinion.

"Well they wouldn't even be fighting, Tony, if it wasn't for your ridiculous behavior."

Tony tore his eyes from the fight for the first time and read the annoyance that was stretched across Ziva's face. She really blamed him for their failure. "Excuse me, but you were the one who shot our suspect in the head!"

"I would not have had to if you had not insisted on arguing with me in the café. Then we would have been alert to the fact that Gibbs and McGee had been compromised." Ziva didn't completely blame him. She knew that she was also to blame, but she couldn't help but be irritated with him and his normal immature behavior the night before. There was only so much of his childish behavior she could take. At this moment, however, she was too aggravated to see the hypocrisy of that feeling, since only a couple days ago she had been seriously worried by his lack of humor.

McGee just shook his head and headed back to his desk, getting ready for yet another knock-down drag-out between Tony and Ziva.

"You were the one who started it with your constant criticism. You can't accept the fact that I might actually know what I'm doing. It wasn't exactly my first undercover assignment."

"Well you certainly could have fooled me." Ziva knew that her irritation was due to more than just their mission failure, but she was hardly about to admit that to Tony, especially not in the middle of the squadroom.

"I'm sorry Ziva, we can't all live up to your impossible standards. And I'm done trying." Tony also knew at this moment that their fight had more to do with their complicated relationship than their job. But she always knew just what to say to get under his skin, and he was powerless to stop it in this instance.

McGee sat at his desk watching their latest back and forth, growing more and more confused. He knew he was missing something, but he just wasn't sure what. Those two were more explosive than live ammunition, and you never knew just what would set them off. For better or for worse.

With his last statement, Tony stormed off, needing to diffuse the situation. And Ziva threw herself down on her desk chair, anger and regret chasing each other across her face. She began opening drawers at random and slamming them closed. McGee jumped each time.

"You should really give him a break, Ziva. I mean, with all that happened this week and his mom and everything." McGee knew in that moment he was taking his life in hands. He swallowed slowly watching the predatory look in Ziva's eyes. She closely resembled a lioness at the moment, choosing whether she would pounce or not. And as suddenly as it came, that look was gone, replaced by one of defeat. She simply deflated in front of him, which scared him far more than her previous look.

"I know McGee. He was spoiling for a fight and I let him pick one." Ziva had picked up on Tony's pattern. He would pick a fight with her, whenever he wanted to avoid talking about something personal or important. And her pattern was to let him. "I just do not know what to do anymore."

"Did he talk to you about his mom?" McGee couldn't stop himself from asking. He knew Abby would kill him if he didn't.

"A little. But I know there is still so much he is holding in." Ziva sighed.

"Well Tony's never been forthcoming about his family. If you want to know all about his latest date or his fraternity escapades, he won't shut up, but anything real and…"

"He shuts down. Yes I know." Ziva couldn't exactly fault him. It wasn't like she didn't act the same way. Ziva turned and stared in the direction Tony had stalked off, trying to decide if going after him was a good idea or not. She was so consumed with her thoughts, she hadn't heard Gibbs comes down the stairs.

"Where the hell is DiNozzo?" Gibbs hollered, frustration coloring his voice.

"Uh, I think he went to the bathroom boss." McGee offered.

"Well go get him! I'm going down to see Ducky. You three better have something on our three dead guys by the time I get back!" Gibbs set off to the elevator, jabbing the button angrily.

"I'll go, McGee." Ziva had made her decision. It was time to face this thing head on.

* * *

"Ah, Jethro. How's Anthony doing?" Ducky greeted Gibbs as he walked into the chilly autopsy room. Abby had spent a good deal of time yesterday with Ducky filling him in on the particulars she had received from McGee. Over a pot of tea she told him all about Tony's mother and her death. Ducky couldn't help but psychologically analyze the agent and what he had surely gone through as a young boy. "Is it true you had no idea about his mother?"

"He's fine Duck." Gibbs didn't have time to sit around and listen to Ducky gab. "He just wants everyone to treat him the same as always." Jethro hoped this would be enough to silence Ducky, but he wasn't that lucky.

"You know, Jethro. Childhood traumas can take years to present themselves psychologically. Do you know if he has seen anyone about it?" Ducky was worried about Tony, especially given his behavior during their last case.

"It happened when he was eight. I think he's moved on. Can we get back to the case now?" Gibbs was trying to steer his medical examiner back on task.

"You really shouldn't ignore how this is affecting him. It's important to take steps before something happens."

"Duck, right now I've got a case to figure out. I'll worry about DiNozzo when it's done. Now what do ya got for me?"

Ducky was still worried, but turned his attention back to the bodies in front of him. "I'm not sure how much I can tell you about our mystery men here. The deaths were pretty obvious. The two over here took three shots to the chest each. And your buyer took one shot to the back of the head." Ducky indicated the bullet wounds on each of the victims. Gibbs needed something more than cause of death. He turned to Ducky silently waiting to hear something that would help them with this frustrating case.

Ducky continued, "The two men that held you and Timothy at gunpoint are noticeably undernourished. There is no evidence of a western diet, and their teeth show no evidence of dental work. I would feel safe saying that they have not spent much time in the U.S. Our third man, however shows some hardening of the arteries consistent with a high-fat diet. He also seems to be of Eastern European descent."

"So he probably spent some time in the U.S?" Gibbs asked.

"It would be a safe assumption. Yes."

"Anything else?"

"One more thing you should see." Ducky picked up the buyer's shoulder turning him so Gibbs could see underneath to the man's back. Across his right shoulder there was a tattoo that contained two words Gibbs new quite well. _Semper Fi._

_

* * *

_

Gibbs exited the elevator, stopping in to see Abby before he headed up to the squadroom, and immediately regretted doing so. As he entered the lab, it sounded like small explosions were going off. A large banner reading "We love you Tony!" was hanging across the room and confetti shot straight into his face.

"Abby!" Gibbs yelled through the noise and mess, waving his arms in front of him and picking the confetti out of his mouth.

"Oh Gibbs! I thought you were Tony." Abby hurried over to him and started brushing the confetti and streamers from his coat and hair.

"What is wrong with everybody? It's not like DiNozzo has been shot." Gibbs really needed to get his team back on track, but they seemed determined to drive him crazy.

"Gibbs. Tony has clearly been holding in his pain for years. He needs our support now more than ever." Abby gave him her best puppy dog eyes, hoping he wouldn't get too mad about the mess she had just created all around him.

"Abby. DiNozzo is a grown man. He can take care of himself. Now can you please tell me something about this case?"

Abby turned back to her computer and brought up the relevant information for Gibbs. "Well I have been going through the computer you found on the vic. It was a very recent purchase. Like two days ago recent. There wasn't much on it, but I was able to get into his email. He sent Captain Mills three emails about their meet."

"Anything about the info he was buying?"

"Why Gibbs, I'm so glad you asked. The info he was interested in were some surveillance photos from a terrorist training camp in Africa."

"Can you pull up the photos?"

"Well, no. Cause the drive Vance gave them was a fake and it was meant to basically self destruct within minutes of the meeting in case the bad guys got away."

"Where's the drive now?" Gibbs felt irritation pulse across his forehead just thinking about Vance.

"Uh, Director Vance took it." Abby knew that statement was only going to make Gibbs madder.

"Is that all ya got?"

"I'm running the faces of the two guys down in autopsy through Interpol now. I haven't got any hits yet. The third guy, the one Ducky thinks is a marine. I ran his prints and he came up in the system." She popped up the man's picture onto the screen. "Gunnery Sergeant Milo Roberts."

Gibbs was pleased they at least had a name for one of these guys, but if this was as important as Vance suggested, they really needed to pick up the pace. He leaned in and gave Abby a kiss on the cheek.

"Good work Abs."

* * *

Ziva entered the men's restroom to find Tony hunched over the sink, his hands gripping the edge, knuckles white. His head was down, staring at his shoes. He didn't even look up when she entered, he didn't have to. He had known she would come. She couldn't help herself, meddling was part of her DNA. That and he was pretty sure he could recognize her scent even in a room full of people. It was truly original, a part of her. No one else smelled quite like her, that intoxicating blend of vanilla, with a hint of spice, slightly exotic and enticing.

Tony just stood there waiting for her to say something. He certainly wasn't going to make this easy for her.

"We were both at fault for what happened last night. I know that. And I was wrong to imply you were solely to blame."

Tony finally picked up his head and looked at her, wishing, not for the first time, that he could see what really went on behind those large brown eyes of hers. She waited for him to say something, the silence stretching between them. He was trying to figure out the best way to proceed. Having a conversation with Ziva was like trying to navigate a mine field, and Tony was looking for any way to avoid an explosion.

"You're right." He enjoyed watching the way her eyes flared as he admitted this. It always felt like a victory when he managed to surprise her.

"We were both distracted, and we let that interfere with the job." Ziva worried that if they kept this up, it would not be the last time they were distracted by each other. This was exactly why Gibbs had Rule #12. The job had to come first when they were putting their lives on the line every day. It may not be comforting, but it was a fact they had to face. If Gibbs or McGee had gotten hurt, or worse, it would have been Tony and Ziva's fault. And that was not something Ziva wanted to live with on her conscience.

"I shouldn't have let you provoke me. You just have a way of pushing my buttons." It was true. She could always find the one thing to say that would set him off. It drove him nuts.

Ziva leaned on the counter next to him unsure how to respond to that disclosure. She was still concerned about how he was handling the revelations of the past few days, but at this point she knew he was beyond sharing. She also knew that he was right. She knew the things that would hurt him the most, and she used them to push him away. It was her method, to keep everyone at arm's length. No one wants to get too close when they're afraid of getting bit.

"Sometimes I cannot help myself. I do it without thinking. But you do not realize that you do it too."

"I do. I do realize."

"So what do we do about it?" She wondered if they would ever be able to break their cycle.

"Honestly, I don't know." Tony turned around and leaned against the counter next to her. He crossed his arms and looked down at her, wishing for an easy answer.

"Are we always going to be stuck in this loop, going round and round and round? I feel that this is not the first time we have ended up here."

His lips twitched into a small smile. "I thought something looked familiar," he joked.

"I do not want to keep doing this."

"Me either," he sighed. "But how do we stop?" How could they get off this merry-go-round? Round and round they went. Growing increasingly closer, until one or both of them spooked. Then the fight, sending them ricocheting into opposite directions. Weeks of tense conversations. Insults hurled across the squadroom. Trying to hurt the other, before they could be hurt themselves.

"The only solution I see is that something needs to change," Ziva suggested.

"Yea, but what? Wait, are you suggesting that…that we shouldn't be partners anymore?" That thought sent a pulse of fear streaking through his body.

"It seems the most logical solution." Ziva quietly tried to be as objective as possible, but inwardly the thought of ending their partnership scared her more than she wanted to admit.

"Who would get to stay, and who would have to go? How do we even begin to make that decision Ziva?" This conversation had taken a bad turn somewhere along the way, and Tony was afraid of the new territory they were now treading. He suddenly wanted to hop back on the merry-go-round. Why had they gotten off again?

"We can't make Gibbs choose. We could draw straws." She suggested it half-heartedly. Ziva too was suddenly afraid they had gone down a road on which they would be unable to return.

"Wait. Wait. What are we doing? Are we seriously considering this?" Tony ran his hands through his hair trying desperately to find a way out of this conversation, when suddenly an idea came to him. "You know we could always go the other way."

"The other way? I do not know what you mean?" She was unsure what other way there could possibly be. He had a strange look on his face and he was stalking slowly towards her.

"We stop fighting this." He gestured between them. "Whatever this is, we let it happen. Stop trying to run from it." He placed his hands on the countertop beside her, leaning over her. Ziva licked her lips and felt her heart rate shoot up, as he got closer.

"Gibbs." It was always the protest they came up with when they wanted to avoid taking a step forward. But it was an excuse, one they had used to often.

"I don't care about Gibbs," he asserted. She gave him a look that said she didn't believe him. "Ok, I do. But we can't keep using that as an excuse." Tony stared down at her lips, wanting to kiss her, continue what they had started yesterday. He wasn't sure she would accept him though.

"I know. You are right." Ziva saw that he was surprised she had admitted this. And she wanted to believe it could be that simple. That they could just let go of all that held them back, but she wasn't so naïve to assume that. "It is not that simple though."

"Why do we have to make it so hard?"

"We are both too stubborn. I do not think it should be this way. Certainly if it was meant to be, it would be easier."

"It wouldn't be worth it, if it wasn't difficult." He reached out and trailed his fingertips across her neck. She immediately tensed and twisted in his grasp. Ziva fought her instinct to escape. When she looked back into his eyes, she was startled to see that the mask had dropped.

Tony's hand traveled up her neck to cup her face. He inched closer and closer, waiting to see if she would accept this. He was sure she could hear his heart beating like a madman inside his chest. Tony could read the indecision in Ziva's eyes, and he froze waiting for her to make her decision.

Unfortunately, neither of them would be able to know the answer to that question, because at that second McGee decided to knock on the door.

"Guys. Come on! If Gibbs comes back and we don't have anything, he's going to kill us! You can't leave me out here alone." McGee's whines came through the metal door.

Tony went to the door and ripped it open. "We're coming McNosey! Keep your McShorts on!" He could have killed McGee in that moment. He stood seething, trying to keep himself from punching McGee in the mouth.

As the boys stood staring at each other, Ziva slowly slipped around them, silently glad McGee had interrupted them. The truth was, that she had no idea what would have happened if he hadn't. Making her way back to the squadroom, she let go of the breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding. Ziva had been wrong. She wasn't ready to face this.

* * *

When Gibbs came back into the bullpen, his agents were ready for him.

McGee was the first to jump up, but Tony grabbed the clicker out of his hands. "Boss, meet former Gunnery Sergeant Milo Roberts. Father was a sailor. Mother was from Turkey. They met when he was stationed in Europe. Roberts grew up back and forth between the U.S. and Turkey." With each click of the controller, Tony attempted to take out his frustration.

McGee took back the controller and continued. " Roberts was dishonorably discharged for striking a superior officer in '96. After that it seems that he traveled around Europe until he found a new job."

Ziva now took the lead. "And that would be as an arms dealer. Roberts was on the FBI and Interpol watch list for several years. That is until he disappeared in '05. No one has heard from him since. It was widely believed that he was dead."

"Well I guess now they're right." Gibbs drawled. "What about the other two? Abs get a hit yet?"

"Yea Boss, and it's not good. They're both part of a radical terrorist cell in northern Africa. It seems the CIA has been watching them for a while."

"I talked to one of my contacts, Gibbs. He says the two of them were smuggled into the U.S. a month ago. They have been meeting with Roberts daily," Ziva added.

"Does the CIA have any idea what they're up to?" Gibbs asked.

"They think they're planning an attack." It seemed Vance finally was ready to share. He stood behind them, arms folded across his chest as they turned to stare at him.

"Where Leon?"

"Israel. Just got off the phone with Eli. He's asked us for our cooperation. Pack your bags. We're all going to Tel Aviv."


	10. Chapter 10

**Thanks so much for reading! And I appreciate all reviews!**

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* * *

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The hum of the airplane wrapped around the team as they slowly made their way halfway across the world. Vance seemed to have acquired Gibbs' ability to sleep through anything, and had been snoring lightly since takeoff. McGee, on the other hand, had spent the last several hours being violently sick into a plastic bag. The smell emanating from his direction had caused them all to shift as far as possible to the opposite side of the plane. Ziva silently wondered how he could have anything else left in his stomach to throw up. Tony on the other hand had been fitfully sleeping off and on, simultaneously annoyed by McGee's heaving and his inability to find a comfortable position in his seat.

For once Gibbs was actually awake, and he sat next to Ziva watching her anxious eyes dart around the plane. Eventually Ziva could feel Gibbs eyes on her, and turned to see him staring at her. She shifted uncomfortably under his gaze, knowing that Gibbs could sense her apprehension.

When she could no longer stand it, she broke the silence, "What Gibbs?"

Gibbs remained silent only raising his eyebrows in knowing way.

"I am fine." Ziva deflected with her classically overused line.

"Didn't say you weren't," Gibbs replied. But he continued to watch her making her feel uneasy.

"I can handle this. I will be able to do my job." Even to Ziva's ears it sounded more like she was trying to reassure herself than him.

"Never doubted that." Gibbs continued letting Ziva take the lead, allowing her to say what she needed to.

"Something is off."

"What?"

"My father. He does not need our help. He has an entire agency to prevent this attack."

"So…" Gibbs prompted.

"So, why did he insist to Vance that we come?" This had been bothering Ziva since the Director's announcement in the bullpen. What was her father up to? There was more going on here than they could see.

"Dead marine. We still need to figure out what Roberts has to do with this." Gibbs suggested.

"No. My father would not care about that. In fact, he would probably stonewall you, just to make you angry."

"I don't doubt that. Maybe he just wants an excuse to see you."

"I do not think so. My father has proven many, many times that there are several things that come before his family." Ziva was suddenly reminded of when she first joined Mossad. Her mother had desperately begged her to reconsider. She had warned Ziva that it was only a matter of time before Eli would betray her, telling her that he would always choose Mossad over her. Turning from those dark thoughts, and back to the present conversation, Ziva continued, "No. There is something more going on here. I just don't know what it is yet."

"We'll find out soon if there is. We're getting ready to land."

* * *

Tony exited through the back of the plane and felt the blistering heat of the desert roll off the tarmac and hit him square in the face. He couldn't help but flash back to his previous trip to Israel. To be honest, he never thought he'd step foot here again. At least not willingly. It was weird how things worked out.

Tony sighed, realizing for the first time just how exhausted he was. He couldn't believe it had been less than a week since Travis had strolled into the squadroom and accused his father of murder. So much had happened to him emotionally in the past few days and he wasn't sure he was up to dealing with Eli David at the moment. On the long plane ride Tony had been unable to stop memories of his mother from flooding forward. Except this time they hadn't all been horrifying and filled with blood. For the first time he could remember in his adult life, he had memories of his mother happy and alive. It was almost like a part of his mind had blocked those times out, but now something had been knocked loose. Since his conversation with Ziva, where he had looked at a picture of his mother for the first time in years, he could hear her laugh again, smell her perfume, see the sparkle in her eyes.

Their latest case was really making him question the direction his life was going in. How much longer could he keep going on this path, until he one day turned into his father?

And there it was. The thought that haunted him. Was he turning into his dad?

"Hey DiNozzo! Are ya waiting for an invitation?" Gibbs bellowed from the ground snapping Tony out of his reverie. He deplaned to meet their welcome team. He was pleased to see that it consisted of Malachi and Liat.

"Director Vance. Agent Gibbs. So good to see you again. I know the Director is most anxious to meet with you." Malachi approached Vance and Gibbs, shaking each man's hand as he welcomed them. Tony observed Malachi approach Ziva and the cold greeting she gave him. He had known this would be hard for her, returning after all that had transpired. But it didn't take a genius to see that she was shutting down, refusing to let anyone and anything touch her. Her defenses had gone up the moment they set down.

Malachi made his way over to Tony and McGee shaking Tony's hand, but realizing it would be best to avoid McGee at the moment.

"How's it going Mal?" Tony pumped the other man's arm up and down, actually pleased to see him.

"It is good to see you Tony. Would you like to drive back with me? We can catch up on the way," he offered.

"Yea. Sounds great. As long as Ziva drives the other car. I'd like to actually make it back alive and in one piece," Tony joked. Ziva turned her head slightly registering their conversation. She was glad Tony was back to joking. After their men's room interlude she had done her best to act like nothing had changed between them. Tony had followed her lead and they had fallen back into their old ways. But he had not forgotten, and when this was all over they were really going to have to talk.

In the car, Tony filled Malachi in on the case so far, at least their part in it, and how they had stumbled onto the terrorists.

"Yes. We have been watching the cell for some time. A team has been working with your naval intelligence doing surveillance. They were not thought to be a major threat until recently."

"So what changed?" Tony wondered.

"Milo Roberts. He brought a large influx of cash to the cell, enabling them to fund a much larger gameplan."

"Do you know how Roberts got involved?"

"It seems his mother was accidently killed in an Isreali raid on a restaurant known to have ties to Hamas."

"Ah, revenge. Still it seems odd that a half American, half European arms dealer would join up with a small terrorist group in Africa." Tony's gut told him Roberts had more secrets yet to uncover.

"Yes, we wondered that as well."

"Any leads on what they have planned?"

"We have intel that there is to be a meeting tonight. We are planning a raid if you would like to join us."

"You're Director would allow that?"

"Certainly you have proven yourself." Malachi seemed more sure about that than Tony thought Director David would be.

"Thanks for the vote of confidence, but I seriously doubt the old man shares your convictions." Tony mused, turning these new revelations over in his head. Something was telling him that this case would have a few more twists and turns before they found the truth.

* * *

The team met Director David in an ultra sleek, high-tech squadroom, that in no way resembled their own. The desks were free of any and all clutter containing only the necessities: computers, phones, pens. The walls were free from adornment and teams worked quietly and efficiently all around them. The only color in the room came from the touch screen plasmas, holding mission details, suspect whereabouts, and satellite maps.

McGee gazed longingly at the plasmas, his fingers itching to touch one. Ziva caught him in an open mouthed stare. McGee quickly took his attention from the fancy objects and turned it to where Vance was greeting Eli.

"Good to see you old friend." Eli grasped Leon's hand and brought him into a swift hug.

"You too Eli. Obviously I wish it was under better circumstances."

"Yes. Such is the world we live in." Eli sighed and surveyed the NCIS team that included his daughter and last living child. He felt a pang of regret for all that had occurred between them, but swiftly brushed it aside, knowing that at the present there were more important things to focus on than regret. He did step towards Ziva and place a light kiss on her cheek, noticing her body's rigid stance as he touched her arms.

Gibbs quickly registered this short interchange between Ziva and her father. Both seemed determined to ignore any memories of their last trip and its repercussions, and steadfastly looked anywhere than at each other. Gibbs knew how hard this was for her and decided to end this interlude, taking a step between the father and daughter reunion.

"Ah, Agent Gibbs. I would say it is a pleasure, but I am not sure you would believe me."

"Director," was Gibbs only reply, as he shook the other man's hand. McGee briefly wondered if they were trying to break the bones in each others' hands with their tense shake.

"I am glad you could come."

"Yea well, I'm not exactly sure why we did."

"I owed Leon a favor. Surely you want to figure out what your former marine was up to? Also your insight on the case would be most valuable."

Gibbs eyed Eli trying to gauge just what this man was up to. He had an agenda, of that Gibbs was sure. Eli David did nothing without a reason. The classic Gibbs glare lasted a minute more, but it wasn't enough to force Eli into confession. He wasn't a scared suspect Gibbs could break. This was going to be a trying visit and it had only just begun.

Before long they were all gathered around a large plasma screen mapping out the particulars of the raid to be performed that evening. Malachi and Liat had informed the team about the cell and what they knew of its plans.

"We believe they are planning a bombing, set during an international business summit later this week. The summit will have many influential leaders in the world market, including several American businessmen and women. Obviously security is already tight during the conference, but the cell seems to believe they have found a hole." Malachi spoke as he pointed out the conference's location on the map.

"Just not one you can find." Ziva added critically.

Liat ignored this and picked up where Malachi left off, demonstrating the security measures that were currently in place around the conference. "The roof access is blocked and will be monitored by several snipers on nearby buildings. Perimeter sweeps, as well as a constant patrol, prevent ground access. Also the building will be swept for explosives several times before the event starts midweek."

Eli informed Team Gibbs of the intel they had received about the meeting to take place that evening. "An informant believes the cell is meeting tonight in this residential apartment building to finalize their plans. We have a team watching this man, Mohammed Karim, who we believe to be the new leader of the cell. His brother-in-law lives at this location. We want to take in Karim alive if possible. He will be able to give us the most information on what the cell has planned."

The team stared at the man's picture now up on the plasma, memorizing his features. He looked fairly innocuous in his picture, unlike a man who plotted mass murder and panic on a daily basis. However, the team had learned over the years, not to underestimate a suspect based on looks alone. Each member of the team had their own apprehensions about the night's raid, but kept these worries to themselves. They would need to be sharp if they wanted to prevent another mishap in this case. Tony silently promised himself that he wouldn't allow any distractions to keep him from the goal. He wasn't about to have a repeat of their blunder at the café. Almost as if she could read his mind, Ziva quietly assured herself of the same thing.

* * *

It seems Tony had been wrong about Director David's plans for Team Gibbs. He had allowed them to join his officers in the raid without protest. They now stood outside in the dark waiting for each team to get in place around the apartment.

Tony and Ziva were covering the back exit of the apartment which led into an alleyway much like the one they had had their shootout in the other night. McGee and Gibbs were around the front waiting by the street in case a suspect managed to get around the primary attack. It seemed that the Director only trusted them so much, however, allowing them only to be part of the secondary team. From the street they could hear the primary team advance and break down the door to the apartment. Shouts and curses could be heard breaking the relative silence of the night.

Within seconds a man burst out the back door and made his way, shooting at Tony and Ziva, down the steps to the ground. Tony and Ziva took cover aiming back at the fleeing suspect. The man was making a break for the mouth of the alley and they quickly followed him. A bullet buzzed past Tony's head, inches from his ear, but he refused to allow it to distract him. His arm came up as he leveled his gun at the man's retreating back. Ziva followed suit next to him, and before long the man hit the pavement with a thud, bullet holes decorating his back.

Meanwhile shots continued to ring out inside the tiny apartment. Around front Gibbs and McGee pulled in closer to the building, trying to apprehend the status of the fight. Gibbs felt more than saw movement to his left and saw a man trying to climb out of a second-story window. With a swift movement he notified McGee and they made their way to apprehend the man. They watched as the man hung for a moment and dropped with a crunch to the sidewalk below. When he turned, their guns were leveled at his head. The man made a desperate sweep with his arms, but Gibbs easily caught them in a tight grasp and swung his arms around to his back. Within seconds the man was cuffed and being held on the ground by McGee, while Gibbs surveyed the scene for any more escape artists.

When it seemed clear, Gibbs hauled the man, who had begun shouting, into the street to their planned rendezvous point. In the alleyway Tony and Ziva had made their way up the stairs to the back entrance of the apartment. Once inside they were greeted with the sickly sweet metallic odor of blood. Bodies littered the ground. Directly in front of them lay their prime suspect, Karim. It looked like he had shot himself in the head, unwilling to be taken in.

Tony and Ziva made their way out the front door where Malachi knelt in a puddle of blood, growing ever larger at his feet. In his arms was Liat, she had been shot twice in the middle of her chest.

Malachi looked up at them as they approached. "She's dead," were his only words.

* * *

**I wanted to get this up last night, but that didn't happen because I got distracted actually watching NCIS. What a thought! Anyway it was another great episode and Michael did a great job directing!**


	11. Chapter 11

**I wanted to get this up yesterday but I got a flat tire and then I had to deal with some issues my best friend was having with her ex. So it didn't happen yesterday. Anyway, I'm sure that's more than you wanted to know. Thanks for reading and reviewing and alerting!**

**I don't own NCIS, but I would love to!**

* * *

"Gibbs! How is everybody? Are you hurt? Where are Tony, and McGee, and Ziva, and the Director? What's happening over there?" Abby's voice flowed through the speakers of the computer at a nonstop, high-speed pace. She and Ducky stood in her lab video conferencing with Gibbs. There had been reports around the office that there was a shooting death in Israel, but no one had yet been able to confirm who it was. Abby had been calling the entire team over and over, unable to get any of them on the phone. She and Ducky were nervously pacing around her lab when Gibbs had finally called in to give them an update.

"Abby. Everybody's fine." Gibbs didn't want to do or say anything to upset the emotional goth anymore than she already was. He was already feeling the stress taking a toll on his team. He was simultaneously worried about DiNozzo still reliving his mother's death, Ziva's anxiety upon returning to Israel, and trying to figure out what the hell Eli David was up to. He did not need to add anymore concerns to the list.

"What happened over there Gibbs? We heard there was a shooting?"

"Yes, Jethro. We've all been mightily worried about you. Who was shot?" Ducky added.

"Liat."

Abby gasped and covered her mouth with her hands. She was shocked that the tough Mossad officer she had met only a few months before could be taken down so easily. In her mind, all ninja assassins managed to avoid death because they were so highly trained. It was sobering to realize that even they were human. This in turn made her worry more about Ziva than she normally would, knowing just how well the former assassin could take care of herself.

"Was the wound fatal, Jethro?" Ducky asked. He couldn't help but imagine the young girl on his table. Although he would not be performing the autopsy, he still could see her pretty face lying there with the cold stare of death in her eyes. It was the product of performing so many autopsies, especially on those he had known in life. In his darker moments, he had had flashes of all the team members ending up in autopsy one day. That seemed to be a side effect of the job.

"Yea. Two shots to the chest."

"Was anyone else hurt Gibbs?" Abby had been almost afraid to ask, but forced the words out of her mouth, needing to find out the truth.

"No. Everybody else is fine." Gibbs anticipating her next question said, "You can talk to them later. I really need to know if you found anything else out about Roberts or his lackeys."

"Even across the oceans you still have amazing mind-reading abilities Gibbs." Abby wasn't surprised he had known they found something.

"No, I just know my team. What do ya got?"

"Jethro, when the blood results came in there were some interesting findings. It seems that Roberts was on an anticoagulant, Coumadin, which is used to prevent blood clots and treat heart disease. The medication would have thinned his blood, which explains why he bled out so quickly."

"Yea, so?"

"He did not have a prescription for it Jethro."

"Maybe it was under an alias. He has been in hiding since 2005."

"No Gibbs, I checked all of his known aliases and there was no record of the prescription. However, I did check his mail. He was having the prescriptions delivered to his house." Abby related her findings.

"What was the name on the prescription?" Gibbs asked.

"That's where things get hinky Gibbs. The medicine was prescribed to a Nira Lawson."

"Girlfriend maybe? Couldn't get his prescriptions with his name so he used hers?" Gibbs wondered aloud.

"That's what I was wondering Gibbs, so I looked into Ms. Lawson. Her name is on the lease for Roberts' apartment. There is also a Virginia driver's license that says she is 66 years old and lists the address for the same apartment. Also lists her as a naturalized U.S. citizen. What's weird is there's no evidence of Ms. Lawson before 1998. I mean nada Gibbs."

"Another alias?"

"Jethro, I happened to see the picture on the driver's license while Ms. Scuito was running it in the database. There are many genetic markers that she shares with Roberts. The ridge of the brow line is identical and the cheek bones suggest a close familial relationship." Ducky pointed to these features on his own face as he described the details to Gibbs.

"So I ran her picture through Interpol. And you'll never guess who she is?" Abby bounced up and down on the balls of her feet, ready to stun Gibbs with their revelation.

"Roberts' mother." Gibbs guessed correctly quickly pointing all the facts together.

"You take all the fun out of it Gibbs." Abby whined. "Yes. Her real name is Selin Al-Naqeeb Roberts. She was thought to have died in '96. I emailed a copy of her Interpol file to McGee."

"Do we have any idea where she is now?"

"A Nira Lawson bought a plane ticket for Tel Aviv an hour after you guys left. Gibbs she's in Israel."

"Thanks Abs. You too Duck. Good work." Gibbs turned to go, but Abby stopped him.

"Stay safe Gibbs! And make sure the others do too!" Abby couldn't help but let the fear creep back into her voice.

"Will do." And with that Gibbs signed off.

* * *

Inside Director David's office, Gibbs filled Eli and Leon in on what his team had discovered about Roberts and Selin Al-Naqeeb. Vance grew increasingly agitated wondering what other turns this case might take before they were through. He felt his early sense of foreboding was now justified. Eli on the other hand took the news with his usual calm expression on his face revealing nothing. However, Gibbs did not think he seemed the least bit surprised Robert's mother was still alive.

"So the question is what is the Selin woman up to now that her son is dead?" Vance said, asking the question that was on everybody's mind.

"And how did she know her son was dead?" Gibbs added.

Eli was suspiciously silent on the matter. Gibbs and Leon shared a glance, finally getting on the same page with this investigation. It was clear now to them both that Eli knew more than he was willing to share. Each trying to figure out the best way to extract that information.

"Something you'd care to add Director David?" Gibbs decided to be direct. Eli's silence continued, prompting Gibbs to add, "Hey, I got all day. This is your country that's in jeopardy."

Eli finally reached an internal decision and began to speak. "She is coming to finish the job."

"A 66 year old lady? She's our mad bomber?" Vance found that hard to believe.

"It is unwise to underestimate her. I assure you." Eli responded vaguely.

"Your assurances really don't count for a lot." Gibbs was done playing around. He wanted some answers, and he wanted them now. "Who is she really?"

"She is a former Mossad officer. She was assigned an undercover assignment infiltrating Hamas. They turned her and she became a double agent. Selin is ruthless and will do anything to complete her mission." Something flashed across Eli's eyes so quickly Gibbs would have missed it if he had not been steadfastly glaring at him. It looked suspiciously like pain. Gibbs would have sworn Eli uncapable of such deep human emotion.

Gibbs' gut told him there was more yet Eli was withholding. "What else aren't you telling us?"

Vance wondered why Eli suddenly began to look so guilty. "Roberts?"

Eli hesitated for a moment, but finally came clean. "He was a sleeper agent. He joined your marines as his cover. He gained contacts within the U.S. and its allies. Gained inside knowledge and fed it to back to his handlers."

"How long have you known?" Vance asked. Eli's eyes shifted back and forth between Gibbs and Vance, unwilling to answer the question. "How long?" Vance yelled, wanting to know why his friend was lying to him.

"We have been watching Selin since she double crossed us," was the only thing Eli offered.

"So that means…" Vance trailed off.

"That you've known the entire time." Gibbs finished, his anger skyrocketing to a new level.

"We relayed the information to the CIA. What they chose to do with the intel, I cannot answer." Director David was growing tired of this conversation. It was not his fault the CIA hadn't informed NCIS. He had a suspect that he still needed to interrogate and an attack to stop on top of the fact that he had just lost a promising young officer. They were wasting precious time. "It is not uncommon for an intelligence agency to keep the identity of a mole secret, so they can feed information through him, false or otherwise."

Vance was still reeling from the news and couldn't believe that Eli had been withholding something of this magnitude. He began to look at their friendship in a new light. It had always been obvious to him that they each had their own agendas to fulfill, but he had assumed they could be truthful with each other on such important matters.

"Now if that is all, I have a suspect to interrogate. Agent Gibbs, you are welcome to join me."

Now Gibbs was thrown. Just what game was Director David playing here. "I don't know if our interrogation techniques really complement each other." Gibbs assumed Eli favored the technique of torture first, ask questions later.

"I trust your judgment, but it is your choice." And with that Eli walked out of his office to interrogate the only suspect left standing from their earlier raid.

Leon and Gibbs were left standing there staring at each other. "Go." Vance ordered still fuming. And so Gibbs set off after Eli to interrogation.

* * *

Malachi had been missing since they returned to the squadroom. It seemed that he wasn't handling Liat's death well. Ziva felt for him, knowing how hard it was to lose someone close. Although she hadn't been too friendly with her former colleagues lately, she still did not wish this upon anyone. And her fight with Liat in D.C. months ago now seemed childish. They were supposed to be on the same side. Ziva now realized she would always mourn those who died in defense of her birthplace and former home.

Ziva stood with Tony and McGee watching the interrogation from the conference room on a plasma screen. It had astonished them all that Director David had asked Gibbs to join in on the interrogation, and they were now anxiously awaiting the results of this experiment. Ziva's earlier suspicions about her father were now intensified. She added that to her own growing list of concerns. Just like Gibbs, she was uneasy about the state of things. Tony was all but giving her the silent treatment now. He only spoke to her when absolutely necessary, and even when he wasn't speaking to her he seemed distracted and distant. She knew he was still deeply troubled, and the trained investigator part of her was pushing her to question him about it. The sane part of her told herself this was a bad idea. Ziva pushed these thoughts to the back of her mind, and focused on the scene unfolding on the screen.

"You are wasting your time. I will tell you nothing." The man who had jumped from a second story window practically into Gibbs' waiting hands, was now sitting across from them, refusing to cooperate in any way.

"Your cooperation now might help you avoid any unpleasantness later on in this interrogation." Eli David warned while an evil smirk played across his lips, leaving his future interrogation techniques to the imagination of his suspect.

"I will be a martyr. Allah will reward me," was the man's repeated response. He clearly felt he had already succeeded.

Gibbs opened a file in front of him, pretending to peruse its contents. In truth he had already memorized what it said. "Amir, is it? Well yea. I'm sure God is ready and waiting with all those virgins. But what about your sister? Nadia? Should she suffer for your sins?" Gibbs pulled out a picture of a beautiful young girl and slid it across the table.

Amir couldn't hide a look of surprised fear that they had found his sister. He had been so sure there was no evidence to link her to him anymore. He quickly clamped down on his fear however and continued to stonewall them. "She is of no concern to me. Allah is the one I live and die for."

"This interrogation can be extended to include Nadia, if that's what you wish Amir?" Eli seemed to believe that threats would work on this man.

"You are too late. This cannot be stopped. You can threaten me all you want. It is useless."

"Your sister is on a student visa studying at Brown University. That's in the U.S. in case you weren't sure where your money is going." Gibbs threw some more pictures of Nadia across the table to Amir. These photos were of the surveillance variety.

Amir was now beginning to sweat profusely. And his face had taken on a decidedly greenish pallor.

"We can have her brought up on charges of terrorism. Have her questioned by the FBI. How does that sound?"

"You can't do that." Desperation shaded Amir's voice. "Nadia has done nothing. She does not even know where I am."

"And why should we believe that? We are getting nowhere with this. I think it is time to move onto phase two." Eli stood up, the legs of the metal chair beneath him scraping along the concrete floor. The harsh sound echoed off the walls of the room.

"No. Wait. Nadia knows nothing. She is not a part of this."

"Tell us what your plan is and we will see what we can do for Nadia," Eli offered still standing with his hand on the doorknob.

"I…it's too…uh…" Amir stuttered.

"Fine. I'll be phoning the FBI." Director David opened the door and took a step into the hallway.

"Wait. I will tell you. If Nadia is left out of this. Promise me you will leave her alone."

"That depends on what you have to say Amir." Eli sat back down.

Amir glanced at Gibbs hoping for reassurances for his sister, but finding none. He sighed and sat back in his chair.

"Milo Roberts was set to attend the business summit, posing as the Vice-President of a U.S. shipping company. He was going to fake a heart attack. Not a difficult feat, as he had one himself two years ago. Security breaks down when there is a medical emergency. Our men would bring in the explosives posing as the emergency response team. No one takes time to check the bags, when a man is lying on the ground dying. They would leave the bag with the bomb behind and exit in the ambulance, detonating as they drove away."

"What's the plan now that Roberts is dead?" Gibbs asked.

"That is what the meeting was about. I cannot tell you, as you have killed all my brothers." Amir spat out, his eyes filling with hatred.

"Who is the new leader of the cell, since Karim is dead?" Eli questioned.

"His sister. Selin Al-Naqeeb."

* * *

Tony stood outside on the sidewalk, letting the sun beat down on his head. Beneath his feet he could feel heat radiating off the concrete. He had needed a break from this case and had thought that fresh air would do him some good. Now he was regretting that decision. It was midmorning and already hotter than six shades of hell.

Another sleepless night was taking its toll on him, and he now felt more exhausted than ever before. It was yet another reminder of the advancing years. He had to face the fact that he was no longer a college frat boy. Tony wondered just how much longer he could flounder through his life. It might just be time to grow up. Heck even Peter Pan chose to grow up one day, if you chose to believe the movie _Hook_ and its storyline.

The events of late had caused Tony to really take a hard look at his life and where he wanted it to go. The night he had spent with Travis had stirred some longings in him that had previously lain dormant. He had caught himself wondering what it would be like to have a son of his own. A son he could teach how to shoot a basketball on the hoop over their garage. One who share his taste in movies and muscle cars.

Inevitably thinking about a kid, made him wonder about a potential Mrs. DiNozzo. Certainly half the fun of having a kid was spent trying to conceive. Right? Of course this line of thought brought him right back to the source of his tension. Ziva. What were they doing? And could he really see himself married to someone like her one day? Even if he did, that didn't mean she would necessarily be on board. He knew it would take extreme measures for her to even admit to a weakness like having feelings for another human being.

Tony sighed, feeling a knot forming in his neck from the tightness of his shoulders. He rubbed his neck, his thoughts turning again to his mother. Her face floated in front of his eyes, and he was glad to finally have some good memories of her to think about. Deep down he knew that part of him had avoided serious relationships because of her. He didn't know if he could handle losing someone he loved that much again. What if he and Ziva did get together, and she was killed on the job? Would he lose it the way Gibbs had when Shannon and Kelly had died?

"How did you slip through security?" Speak of the Devil. Ziva stood next to him. He hadn't even heard her approach being so absorbed in his thoughts.

"I'm not completely incompetent, you know," he responded taking out his stress on her.

"I know. I was just wond…never mind. I didn't mean to make you angry."

"It's fine. I shouldn't have jumped down your throat."

They stared at each other for a moment, both unable to come up with anything to say. Ziva looked thoughtful for a minute, and then she said, "Follow me." And with that she took off down the street.

"Where are you going? Ziva. Ziva!" Tony called after her. When she didn't respond he jogged to catch up with her. "Where are you taking me?"

"Just follow me and you will see," was the only response she gave him. And although he questioned her for a full ten minutes she refused to respond. They walked quickly, Ziva obviously having a definite location in mind. She took a left, a left again, then a right, two more lefts and kept going. Tony was perplexed as to where she was taking him.

Finally they stopped outside a building that might have been considered elegant when it was first built, but was now showing signs of wear and neglect. Ziva stared up at it with a look of what could only be termed nostalgia on her face.

"See that window there on the top floor. The second one in from the end." He followed her finger to where she was pointing.

"Yea."

"That is the window to my old bedroom. My old apartment was on the top floor."

Tony stared up at it, surprised that this is where she had taken him. The moment suddenly felt very personal. It wasn't often that Ziva let someone in on her private life.

"It was my first apartment when I joined Mossad. It is really tiny, but it has the most amazing views of the city and it was within walking distance to work.

"It looks…nice," Tony ended lamely. All of sudden he wasn't sure what to say, afraid to ruin whatever this moment was. This strange instant where she actually let him in.

"I loved living there. And there is a park right around the corner where I would run every day." Ziva pointed off to the right where he could just make out a park down the road.

"Do you miss living here?"

"Sometimes. But lately not so much."

"Why?"

"Because this is no longer my home. And I am ok with that. Also nothing can take away the good memories I have of this apartment." Tony stood there staring at her, feeling privileged that she had shared this with him.

"Thank you for bringing me here."

"You're welcome." She took her eyes off the building and turned towards him. Their eyes met and he felt that inexplicable pull between them. Tony watched as her eyes unfocused and slid off to the right. Her eyes narrowed slightly. She stepped towards him, but was no longer seeing him. He began to turn his head but she stopped him with her hands. Ziva cupped his head in her hands and took another step towards him.

"What?" he whispered into her ear. She was now practically on top of him.

Ziva wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him closer. "There is a black sedan down the road that has been following us."

Tony could feel her breath on his ear and had to fight to suppress an urge of desire as he felt her body pressed up against him. Quickly he wrapped his arms around her, hearing her breath hiss out, and turning her so that he could see down the road to the car she mentioned. "So I guess that explains all the walking in circles and zig-zagging on the way here."

"Yes. I was not sure, until just now when I saw the car again."

"Do you think they realize they've been made?" Tony wondered.

"Oh yes. They are pulling out now." Ziva had turned them again and saw the car pull away from the curb. She detached herself from Tony and took off down the road after them.

"Ziva. Ziva! Where the hell are you going? Ziva!" Tony yelled after his partner as she took off running after the car.

"Tony. I think Selin was in that car!" She yelled back to him.

"Ziva. Wait! This is so not a good idea." Tony muttered to himself as he ran after her.

The car took a few quick turns, but Ziva was able to keep it in eyesight. She turned a corner just in time to see the car disappear into a old building. Without a thought she set off towards the building. It seemed to be an abandoned building and when she looked inside she could see the car, but no living person. Tony finally caught up to her and was wheezing softly behind her.

"What the hell are you doing? We don't have any backup. We need to call Gibbs."

"If we wait we may lose Selin." Tony saw that she had already made her decision and there was no way he was going to be able to stop her. God help him, but he would back her up. That's what partners are for. When he was ready he gave her a nod and they made their way into the building.

The room seemed to be empty except for the car. They looked around wondering where its occupants had gone, when they heard gunshots from behind them. Each ran to take cover behind the car. Tony and Ziva shot back at the source of the shots, unable to fully make out who was targeting them. Before they knew what was happening, the door slid shut in front of them. And next came the sound of a bolt being slid home.

Ziva ran over to the door checking to see if she could get it open. It was locked. She searched around the large room for a way out, running to check the other doors. All of them were locked.

"We're locked in here Tony." She called over to him.

Tony was standing at the back of the car looking in the window at the back seat.

"Ziva. There's something you need to see." She walked over to see what he was talking about.

In the back seat of the car sat a stack of explosives. Attached was a timer that read 2:00:00. It started running as she bent over to look at it.


	12. Chapter 12

**This chapter and I fought for a while. It really didn't want to get written, but I pushed through, and now its finally done! I'm not sure if some of the computer stuff is correct, but I used it to make the story work. I hope you like the chapter. Thanks for the reviews and story alerts!**

**I don't own NCIS, but I would love to!**

* * *

"McGee!" Gibbs bellowed as he flew into the squadroom.

"Yea boss?" The screen in front of McGee had fully absorbed his attention, and Gibb's sudden appearance caused him to jump to attention in his seat.

"You get that file from Abby?"

"Yea the Interpol file on…"

"Can you pull it up?" Gibbs asked, cutting McGee off before he could finish the name he had been about to say.

"I was actually just reading through it. What are you looking for?" McGee recognized the look in Gibbs eyes. He was pissed. And McGee was pretty sure Eli David was the source of that irritation. It was pretty clear that they were barely tolerating each other at this point, and before long there just might be some sort of explosion.

Gibbs leaned over McGee's shoulder reading the file on Selin Al-Naqeeb. Interpol had been watching her because of her brother's Karim's ties to Hamas unaware that she had her own ties. It seems the Israelis hadn't informed Interpol either about Selin's activities. The file that Abby had sent McGee still claimed that Selin had died in 1996. As Gibbs read, a growing feeling of dread spread throughout his gut. He had a horrible feeling that he just couldn't shake. Something was wrong, but he couldn't figure out what.

"What does the file say about her marriage to Roberts' father?"

"Just that he was Navy Captain Patrick Roberts. They met while he was stationed in Greece. They married 2 months later. And Milo was born not long after that." McGee wasn't sure exactly what Gibbs was looking for, but he plowed on. "It says that Captain Roberts was killed in a fire at their home when Milo was 8. Police determined the fire was caused by a cigarette left burning while the Captain was upstairs asleep. Milo and his mother were in Turkey at the time of the fire."

"Convenient."

"You think she had something to do with it boss?" McGee didn't see how that was possible.

"She's former Mossad, McGee. Anything's possible." Gibbs had no evidence that Selin killed her husband, but he just knew somehow that she did. "What does it say about her supposed death?"

"Pretty much just like Malachi described it. She allegedly died in a raid on a restaurant. Report said that two customers were accidently shot and killed."

"Can you pull up the report from in _here_?" Gibbs asked, raising his eyebrows in a suggestive manner, hoping McGee would understand what he was trying to say without needing to question him aloud.

"Here?" McGee was confused for a second, and then he realized what Gibbs was trying to ask. He wanted McGee to hack into Mossad's files and retrieve the info. McGee's eyes suddenly went wide with understanding. "Uh, I don't think that would be a good idea boss." McGee giving Gibbs a look of his own.

"Why not McGee?"

"Because I am being watched," he said as quietly as possible, avoiding moving his lips too much.

Gibbs glanced around at the others in the room and the security cameras on the wall and let out a sigh of resignation.

"But Abby could do it," McGee continued even more quietly. "When Ziva was missing, we found a way to, you know, get the information we were looking for. She should be able to do repeat that process." McGee struggled to find a way to relay this to Gibbs without actually saying out loud that Abby could hack into Mossad.

"Thanks McGee. I'm going to go make a call."

"Right boss."

Gibbs stood to leave and stopped short, glancing around the room. "Where the hell are DiNozzo and David?"

"Uh, I think Tony went to get coffee and Ziva followed him."

"When was that?"

"Ten minutes ago, I think?"

"You think McGee?"

"Uh, I'll go find them."

With that Gibbs quietly left the squadroom and McGee went in search of the bickering partners.

* * *

"Abs. I need you to hack into Mossad."

"No problem Gibbs."

"Really?" Gibbs had figured she would protest a little first. He had been sure she would launch into some explanation about the difficulty and the time it would take to get the job done.

"If I can do it once. I can do it again. Plus I have the little goat to help me. Except last time I did have McGee's help. But don't worry Gibbs, I know I can get in. I know everyone thinks McGee is better at this stuff, but I can still…"

"Abby." Gibbs cut her off. "How long is this going to take?"

"Well that depends on what I'm looking for?"

"I want everything you can find on Selin Al-Naqeeb."

"What's going on over there Gibbs? You and Eli not playing nice?" Abby was really curious to know about all the intrigue in Israel. So far she had gotten barely any information out of Gibbs and McGee was texting her one word answers to her questions. For the first time she wished she was a field agent so she could be over there with the team, instead of stuck in her lab begging for updates.

"He's not exactly in the mood to share."

"Well now have you been friendly Gibbs? Sometimes you're not exactly the most open either. Maybe you should give him a chance." Gibbs could feel an Abby length run-on sentence coming. So when she stopped to take a breath he yelled her name to get her attention.

"Abby!"

"Sorry Gibbs. Ok I'm in, but it's going to take me a minute to translate this stuff."

"That was fast."

"Well once you do it once, it's really not hard to get in again. Ok, here we go." Abby was locating all the files on Selin. She opened one and started reading, feeling Gibbs impatience through the phone, her eyes skimmed as fast as was humanly possible. "Oh no, Gibbs this does not look good."

"What is it?"

"It looks like Mossad suspected Selin and Eli were having an affair when she still worked for them. It seems that he is the one who discovered she had been turned into a double agent. They fought but Selin got away. Mossad was_ very_ suspicious of Eli after that. They didn't think the relationship was over. I guess they assumed he let her get away. Anyway it says that he finally proved his loyalty in a raid in '96 when he shot her. They thought she died."

Gibbs had known Eli was still lying to them. It did not surprise him that there was way more to the story than Director David had shared with them. He felt vindicated that his gut had been right again. Whatever was going on now had to be a direct result of their previous relationship. This wasn't about God or country, though. No, this was personal.

"Is there any evidence to suggest anyone else other than Eli knew she survived?"

"Not that I can see, but I have to keep looking. I haven't read through everything yet."

"Ok. Keep me updated on what you find. And email all this to McGee."

"What are you gonna do Gibbs?"

"I'm going to have a little chat with Director David."

* * *

Ziva had led them into a trap. She was mentally chastising herself for being so stupid as she searched around the abandoned building for some means of escape. Each door was locked from the outside and the only windows were twenty feet up. That however, did not stop her from retrying each door five or six times. With each failure, her desperation at their situation grew.

The timer on the bomb that was in the car steadily ticked down from the two hours it had started at. Although Ziva could have easily disarmed it, there was no way of getting to the wires without exploding the bomb. It had been wired so that if the doors or the trunk were opened it would immediately go off.

"What are you doing?" Tony asked from where he was seated, leaning against the wall.

"Looking for a way out of here. You might want to help me." Although her words may have been casual, her tone was anything but. Ziva threw him a harsh glare and went back to scanning the room. How could he just sit on the floor and wait for death, she wondered.

"You've already checked those doors a hundred times. We're not getting out of here." His tone was nonchalant, as if he were remarking on the weather, instead of their impending demise.

"This was a trap. A trap I led us into, and now I am going to find a way out." Even though no clear solution presented itself, Ziva still held onto the belief that they could survive this. Somehow.

"Well of course it was a trap. Even a blind man could have seen that."

"Then why did you not stop me?" Ziva wished more than anything he would have stopped her.

"Oh, like I could have? I told you we should have called Gibbs for backup." Tony was getting fed up dealing with this crazy woman. He almost wished the bomb would just explode already because she was driving him insane. He knew that he was allowing his anger at their situation get to him. But this woman had caused him nothing but exasperation, annoyance, frustration, and aggravation in the last five years. But no matter what happened he kept coming back. Ok so maybe she had also given him happiness, comfort, friendship, and plenty of sexual fantasies. But right now she was getting on his nerves, and all he wanted to think of were the negatives.

"You were right. Is that what you want to hear? Who knows where Selin could be now?" Ziva really was sorry she had let them get caught. If truth be told, it was because she had been so distracted at the time. She had been reminiscing about her old apartment, while internally struggling with her feelings for her partner. This had caused her to react without thinking when she saw Selin.

Tony perked up at Ziva's last words. "This was a trap."

"Yes I just said that."

"No. I mean it's not a trap for us. It's a trap for Gibbs and the team." The truth was finally dawning on him.

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"It means that Selin is going to use us to lure Gibbs and Eli out. While they are trying to find us, she's going to set off the bomb at that conference thingy."

"Oh my God. You are right. We have to figure out a way to warn Gibbs." She turned around and stared at him in horror.

"Well unless you know how to make smoke signals, I don't see how we're going to do that." Tony hadn't brought his phone since he had assumed he would only be outside a few minutes. He was assuming Ziva didn't have hers either or she would have used it by now.

"You don't have your phone either." It wasn't a question. They were trapped with no way to warn Gibbs about what Selin was up to.

Ziva's eyes locked onto Tony's. And for the first time since they had been trapped in this room she really looked at him. Tony's face was alarmingly pale and he was sweating profusely. From her position she could only see his shoulders and head above the back end of the car, but she could tell he was sort of slumped over. Something was wrong.

Ziva took a step in his direction and saw him flinch. "What is wrong Tony?"

"Nothing Zee-vah. Go back to trying to find a way out of here."

Panic filled her mind and her heart beat erratically inside her chest. As she made her way around the car, she finally saw what the problem was.

Tony's hand clutched at his right side. Underneath it was a growing stain of scarlet.

"You were shot!" Ziva ran over to him and knelt down at his side. How could she have not noticed this. She had been so concerned with finding a way out that she had barely glanced at him since the door had shut locking them in here. "Why didn't you tell me? If there is any time to brag about being shot, now is the time." She honestly couldn't believe he was sitting there stoically. The normal Tony would have been whining the entire time drawing as much attention to himself as possible. This lack of complaint was what scared her most.

"Yea well, it's not that bad. Plus I figured the bomb was a bigger deal at the moment." He attempted to look remorseful about not telling her.

"Let me see it."

"No," he replied, pushing her hand away.

"If you do not let me see it, I will have to tell Abby what happened to her Brain Matter CD."

"You wouldn't!"

"Just try me."

"Fine." Tony pouted, but removed his hand so Ziva could look at his gunshot wound.

She slowly pulled up his shirt and examined the wound. It was about three inches above his hip. Blood sluggishly spilled out of it, running down to the waistband of his pants.

"You are lucky. From this position it probably missed anything vital."

"Yea well I was thinking about getting a little fat taken off my love handles anyway," Tony joked, trying to deflect the seriousness of their situation. "Don't even think about trying to dig the bullet out."

"Tony. Rule number one is that you never try to remove the bullet. All those movies you watch are horribly mistaken. What I need to do is put a pressure bandage on it."

Ziva suddenly pulled her arms into her shirt while twisting her body slightly.

"What are you doing?" Tony stared at her in disbelief.

"I'm taking my bra off," she said matter of factly.

Tony gawked at her a moment with his mouth hanging open. "Um, may I ask why? Not that I wouldn't enjoy the view," he smirked.

"I told you I am going to make a pressure bandage. Do you have an undershirt on?"

"No. Why the hell would I wear an undershirt when it is a thousand degrees outside?" Tony watched as Ziva slipped out of her bra. She took the knife from her belt and expertly cut the padding out, keeping the band of the bra intact.

"An undershirt catches the sweat. It does not matter. We'll use your boxers instead."

"Excuse me?"

"Look do you want to bleed to death or not?" Ziva eyed him defiantly.

"Does it really matter? We're just going to blow up in an hour and a half anyway."

"No we are not. Now shut up and let me help you."

This effectively closed his mouth and he watched as she worked in silence. She had placed the padding from her bra over the wound and had him press down on it with his hands. Once she had done this, she wrapped the banding of her bra around his waist so that it held the padding down, effectively keeping pressure on the wound. After that she helped him cut off his boxers which she cut into strips. These she used to tie around his waist to add even more pressure to the banding of her bra.

Tony thought it ironic that they had removed most of their underwear, and yet this was the least erotic thing he had ever experienced. Trust Ziva to take the fun out of stripping their clothes off each other.

When she was done she sat back on her heels and examined her work. Not bad, she thought.

"Alright. That should be ok for now. Now I am going to find us a way out of here."

"Ziva…"

"Don't." The look on his face told her exactly what he was about to say, and she wasn't going to hear it.

"Don't what?"

"I know what you're going to say."

"What?"

"You are going to tell me something stupidly heroic. Like leave me behind and save yourself. This is not one of your cowboy movies and you are not John Wayne."

"Wow! I'm impressed you know who John Wayne is. I guess you really have been listening to me all these years."

"With all the talking you do, I'm bound to remember one or two things."

Tony smirked at that. It did give him a little jolt of pleasure to realize she was paying attention to his movie references. But the pain in his abdomen reminded him of the here and now. "Promise me if you have a chance to get out of here you'll take it. Don't sacrifice yourself for me."

"Tony. I didn't just wrap up your wound to leave you here to die." This was not a possibility she wanted to discuss. Either they were both getting out of here or they were both going to die here.

"I'm just saying. If you can get out and I can't make it…I want you to leave me." It wasn't like he wanted to die here in this god-forsaken building so far from home, but he couldn't let her give up her life for him. How did this happen? He had finally just made the decision to grow up and think about his future. He had finally decided he wanted to have kids and get married. Or at least seriously consider it. And now he was lying on the ground, slowly bleeding to death. What kind of ironic twist of fate was this?

Did he really wait all his life to make these decisions, just to go out like this? This couldn't be the way it ended. There was still so much he was supposed to do.

"Fine." Ziva knew he wouldn't take no for an answer so she told him what he wanted to hear. But the truth was, she wasn't leaving without him.

* * *

"It's time to tell me the whole truth about Selin Al-Naqeeb." Gibbs entered Director David's office on the warpath, slamming the door behind him. He was here to get answers. He wasn't going to accept anymore lies. When he saw the looks on the faces of Eli and Vance, he stopped short.

"What happened? Are we too late?" Naturally Gibbs assumed that Selin had somehow slipped by them and gotten into the business summit. He was not prepared for what came out of Vance's mouth.

"Gibbs. We just got a call from Selin. She has DiNozzo and David. We have less than two hours to find them before she kills them." Director Vance didn't hold back. He knew Gibbs could take it and would want to know exactly what they were dealing with. However, the force of Leon's words still hit Gibbs like a punch to the stomach.

Gibbs mentally shook himself and forced his mind to concentrate on the words coming from the men in front of him.

"Do we have any leads on where they are?"

"She alluded to an abandoned building downtown." Eli finally spoke up. Gibbs searched Eli's eyes for any of the fear or disquiet that he was now feeling. But he saw none. The man was either very good at hiding his feelings or he truly didn't care about what happened to his only living daughter.

"What building?"

"She didn't specify."

"Do you care at all what happens to your daughter?"

"Ziva can take care of herself. Besides the fact that this is a trap Agent Gibbs. Selin is trying to keep us busy while she plants the bomb at the summit. I have already sent a team there." Eli knew without a doubt this was her plan. "Moreover she gave us no proof that she actually has them."

"That may be so, but I know my agents and they would never be gone this long without their phones if something wasn't wrong."

"As precise as your 'gut' may be, I cannot make decisions based on your feelings alone."

"You knew this would happen, didn't you!" Gibbs was furious now. He was seriously considering striking the director of Mossad.

"Agent Gibbs! That's enough. We will send out a team to find DiNozzo and David." Vance tried to step in and diffuse the situation before someone took a swing.

"This is why you invited us here. You knew this was personal and that if you dangled your daughter in front of her, she couldn't help but take the bait. You did this to force her hand." Gibbs could barely see straight due to the hatred he felt welling up inside him because of this man.

"Yes."

Now, Vance was the one staring at Eli with a look of shock and revulsion on his face.

"I know Ziva can handle herself. And certainly you believe in Agent DiNozzo as well. They will be fine."

Gibbs glared at Eli, unable to form coherent thoughts. He turned on his heel and stormed out of the office.

* * *

"Boss. Boss. I can't find Tony or Ziva. No one has seen them." McGee had looked all over the place but there was no sign of them. At first he thought that maybe they were just outside, but even security didn't know where they were. McGee finally called both of their phones only to realize that they had left them in the squadroom. Where the heck would they go without their phones? He was just beginning to freak out when Gibbs came hurrying down the hall.

"I know McGee."

"Do you know where they are?"

"Selin trapped them in a building downtown somewhere."

"But…why would she do that? How could she?" McGee's mind was spinning. How had she managed to capture them? What building were they in? These questions and more ran through his head.

"She's going to set the bomb off at the summit while we look for Tony and Ziva."

"Oh God." McGee felt his stomach drop.

"Can you pull up the security cameras around this place?"

"Uh, uh, yea." It took a minute for McGee's mind to start working again. They were back in the squadroom. McGee pulled up the camera info for the past few hours. He found Tony and Ziva following them outside where they stood talking for a minute and then disappeared down the street.

"Are there cameras on the street you can pull up?"

"Yea. Let me look." McGee pulled up several street cameras and they followed the progress of their two missing agents. Finally they found the building where they were trapped, watching the gunshots fly back and forth before the door slammed closed. Just before the door closed Gibbs saw a bullet hit Tony in the stomach.

"Freeze it there McGee." Both were frozen for a minute watching Tony on the screen. "Let's go McGee."

Gibbs, Vance, and McGee pulled up to the building where they had seen Tony and Ziva disappear into. Each pulled out their weapon, ready to meet whatever was waiting for them.

As they began to cross the street, the force of the explosion hit them sending them flying backwards as a large fireball shot into the sky.


	13. Chapter 13

**For your reference: Scene 2 of this chapter takes place just minutes after the explosion of the abandoned building at the end of Ch.12, so the characters in the scene are completely unaware of that explosion.**

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* * *

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Something wasn't right. The bomb had gone off early. Even though it had taken them some time to track down Tony and Ziva, it still shouldn't have blown already. Maybe Selin had been lying. Perhaps she had rigged the building to blow if anyone approached. Or else she had never planned on allowing them two full hours to find their missing agents. It was impossible to know what the woman was up to.

Cinders and ash still rained down all around them, covering the earth in a grayish film. The explosion had been contained, but still powerful, the force able to send Gibbs, McGee, and Vance flying through the air. McGee had scrapped his hands and face on the pavement. It looked like the Director may have skinned his arms as well. Gibbs had escaped without incident, but he feared his agents inside had not. Terror gripped his insides as he thought about what he might find in the building. He hoped against hope that they had somehow managed to escape before the bomb had blown.

Gibbs surveyed the damage in front of him, disbelief coloring his features. How could he have let this happen? For all he knew Selin had been successful and already planted a bomb at the conference as well. As much as he would like to blame Eli, he couldn't help but blame himself also. If only he had figured it out sooner. Or kept a better eye on his agents. Didn't he know to trust his gut after all this time?

Tony had been distracted, preoccupied with the past all week. And Ziva had been an anxious ball of energy since the moment the plane had set down. He should have watched them more closely. Hell they should have never come at all. Gibbs wondered now if he should have listened to Ducky's warnings about Tony more closely. Had his senior field agent been so unstable and inattentive as to allow himself to be easily trapped? The answer to that should have been no. Gibbs knew Tony, knew what he was capable of and how he worked under stress. After he had learned the truth of Tony's mother, he had decided to honor Tony's wishes and treat him the same as always. He honestly believed that Tony was strong enough to handle the memories of his unhappy childhood. Plus Gibbs knew that Tony wouldn't want a fuss, but should he have tried harder to pry?

This shoulda, woulda, coulda dance was getting him nowhere. It was time to stop stalling and actually check out the crime scene.

McGee walked over to Gibbs, a dazed expression covering his face. His eyes had a far-away look to them. He turned to Gibbs with his mouth open, knowing he had something to say to his boss, but completely unable to remember what.

"McGee." Gibbs tried to focus the younger man's attention.

"Uh, yea boss? I, uh…" McGee desperately tried to form a coherent thought.

"Did you have something to tell me?"

"Oh, uh yea. Um, they said it's safe for us to go in now."

"You ok, McGee?"

"Yea boss. I mean no. I mean yes. I…I don't know." McGee honestly couldn't process the possibility that Tony and Ziva might be dead. That half their team had been wiped out in an instant. He was having a hard time putting sentences together, but he knew that now Gibbs needed him to pull it together and do his job. He attempted to mentally prepare himself for what they might find inside.

"Me too." Gibbs' hand clasped McGee's shoulder and gave it a short squeeze, both men endeavoring to take some comfort from the gesture.

When they entered the burnt smell of the place invaded McGee's nose causing him to sneeze. His eyes swept the room, unable to see how Tony and Ziva could have survived the blast. In front of them were the remains of what used to be a car.

"Looks like the bomb was in the car," McGee observed. He noticed that the back end of the car was basically gone and pointed this out to Gibbs. "This looks like the site of detonation."

"Yea." Gibbs bent down and picked up what looked to be the remains of the timer holding it up for McGee to see.

For the next few minutes each member of the team worked silently, looking for any evidence of their teammates, but praying that they actually found none. They worked quickly and quietly, joined by Mossad officers sent to collect evidence. There had been no news from Eli and they were still unaware of what had happened at the conference.

After a few minutes of searching McGee called over to Gibbs. "Boss." McGee's voice rose an octave and cracked.

Gibbs turned and slowly made his way over to McGee, each step his feet felt heavier and heavier, to the point where he had to force his legs to cover the distance. Dreading what he knew he would find, he glanced first at McGee whose face was deathly pale, and then at the corner where McGee was pointing.

In the corner sat the remains of what appeared to be two charred bodies. One was leaning against the other at an odd angle, almost as if trying to shield the other.

Gibbs turned and walked out of the back of the building, using a door that had been flung open from the blast. He hurried to a nearby garbage bin and proceeded to throw up in it.

* * *

Vengeance pulsed through the veins of Mossad Officer Malachi Ben-Gideon. He had never before felt such a powerful surge of blind rage. As he stood outside the hotel where the business conference was taking place, Liat's face would not leave him. All he could see was the blind stare of death, and the blood. So much blood. He could still feel it coating his fingers, thick and sticky. Before he had never been one to be weakened by the sight of death and gore, but now he was allowing this image to haunt him.

With each passing second his anger grew, knowing no bounds. He looked gladly on the moment when Selin Al-Naqeeb would show her face. The moment when he would be able to release all this fury he had built up inside. It was time she pay for her sins.

If Malachi could have thought clearly in this instant, he would have realized that Selin was not the one who had killed Liat. In fact he would have been able to acknowledge that they all willingly accepted their fate every day, knowing the risks of their job. Malachi was often himself fueled by the surge of adrenaline he experienced with each close brush with death. Yet he could not let go of the need for revenge. Liat had been his partner, sometimes more, but he had been unprepared for the way her death had affected him. Now he felt his only recourse was to make Selin and whoever else was involved in this plot pay for her death.

His eyes were sharp and alert, scanning the walk in front of the hotel for any sign of the older woman. There were agents posted all around the conference room, but so far there had been no sign of her or anyone else suspicious.

"There is no sign of her so far Director." Malachi informed his boss through his comm.

Director David had been sure that she would show now while she assumed they were searching for Ziva and Agent DiNozzo. With each passing minute, however, this seemed like less of a possibility. He watched the surveillance feed from his office, scanning the crowds for his enemy. His thoughts kept going to Ziva, hoping she had escaped. Although some may call him unfeeling, he really did care about what happened to her. After all she was the only child he had left. But he trusted in her training, knowing that she had survived much stickier situations. Gibbs may hate him, but he was grateful to the man. He had been able to provide stability to Ziva's life, where Eli had not. She had a life now of peace and security, one Eli had always hoped to give her, as well as all his people.

Eli worried about just how far Selin would go with her revenge. His previous relationship with her had always been tempestuous and turbulent. Now he had put his daughter in harm's way again because of his mistake. Eli reminded himself that Ziva was trained to deal with situations just like this, trying to reassure himself. That was the hope he clung to, as he waited for his team to catch Selin.

Malachi's every sense was tuned into possible danger, so he noticed when a young woman came walking down the street to his right. There was something familiar about her but he could not place her. The woman was very agitated and looked as if she might be sick at any second. He watched as she walked faster and faster coming towards the entrance to the conference. When he looked around at his fellow team members he realized that they had been watchful of the girl's presence as well.

Just then the girl's identity hit him. She was the sister of the man they had in custody.

"Director. Amir's sister Nadia is here!" Malachi took off after her, sure that she was the one that now carried the bomb. When he got closer he saw the wires under her shirt. The bomb was strapped to her chest. "Get everybody back. Nadia is the bomber." The other agents scrambled from their positions to push the street patrons back and get them to safety.

Nadia, so absorbed in her own distress didn't even notice all the activity around her at first. Before long though, she looked around and saw the hurried movements and frightened looks of those around her. This was also when she realized a man was barreling towards her pointing a gun at her.

"Don't move." Malachi shouted at her.

Nadia began to cry, her distress growing exponentially. "I can't stop." She slowed her steps, but didn't stop moving forward.

"I said stop!" Malachi was yelling at her, but trying to keep his distance, unsure just what the blast radius might be.

"I'm sorry. I can't." Nadia slowed even more but still moved in the direction of the hotel.

"Stop now or I will have to shoot." Malachi looked around to see that most of the people had been moved off the street. Many were running in the opposite direction. Some were screaming. He could feel the panic spreading as more people realized what was happening.

"She'll kill him if I stop. I'm sorry."

"Who? Selin? Who will she kill?"

"My brother. She has him." Nadia was now moving so slowly she was almost standing still. It was clear she was being forced to do this.

"No, Nadia. We have Amir in custody. He is safe." Malachi wondered how Selin had maneuvered this. Had she brought this girl from the U.S. just to use her as a suicide bomber? And where was Selin herself? Was she watching them now?

"Not Amir. My baby brother, Tariq. He's only fourteen." She was sobbing now, her words almost unintelligible amidst her tears.

"Nadia. We can help you, but you have to stop."

"No. She's watching. If I stop…if I don't do this…he will die."

"Where is Selin?"

"I…I don't know."

"Nadia. Show me the bomb. I'll tell you how to disarm it."

"I…I…" Nadia moved her hand slightly towards her chest. She hesitated not sure what to do. Before she could make her decision the bomb went off.

* * *

"McGee, no. No. It's not them. It can't be."

"Abby."

"No. No. No. Remember the last time we thought Tony was blown up? He was fine then, and he'll be fine now."

"Abby." McGee had contacted Abby to get her to send a copy of Tony and Ziva's medical records over to Israel. They needed to determine if the bodies they found were indeed those of their fellow agents. Abby however, refused to accept the possibility that the charred remains they had found could be Tony and Ziva.

"McGee." Abby countered, stretching the last part of his name out. "No. And when everyone thought Ziva was dead in Africa, but she wasn't. No. Those two have more lives than a cat. They're not…it can't be…" Abby trailed off, doubt entering her voice for the first time. Her face cracked and she suddenly started crying.

"Abby. Abs, you're right. It might not be them. That's why I need their files, so we can prove that it's not them." McGee tried to comfort his favorite forensic scientist, but that was quite a feat over the computer and hundreds of miles away. He wanted to believe in what he had just told her, but couldn't see a logical way it could be true. If by some miracle those bodies weren't Tony and Ziva, then who the heck were they?

"McGee. How did this happen? Where was Gibbs? Where were you? How did they even get captured in the first place?" Questions filled Abby's mind. She felt so frustrated being so far away, not able to do anything to help. She couldn't accept that Tony and Ziva might be dead. Not until she had full forensic and scientific proof of that fact. "Where is Selin?"

"We, uh, we don't know yet."

"What do you mean, you don't know. McGee, you need to catch this psychopath!"

"We're working on it Abs. After she blew up the bomb at the conference, they looked for any sign of her, but they couldn't find her."

"How's Malachi doing?"

"He's still in the hospital, but they think he'll survive." Malachi had been the closest to Nadia when the bomb went off. He had been burned but the doctors were hopeful that he would survive.

The last few hours had been a circus, trying to deal with the fallout from two explosions. Eli David was another person who would not accept the idea that his daughter was dead. He still clung to the hope that she had been able to escape, but even he couldn't explain away the two bodies they had found.

Gibbs, on the other hand, had refused to leave the remains of what were most likely his two agents, so he was now pacing back and forth as the medical examiner performed the autopsy. He had called Ducky and insisted that he be present, at least as present as one can be over a video conference. The Israeli medical examiner had been upset over this development and had tried to argue, but the Gibbs glare forced him into acquiescence.

McGee had offered to get the medical records from Abby, trying to think of a way to be helpful. He had known she would not take the news well, but hadn't foreseen her complete and utter denial of the facts. Now McGee was feeling his own frustrations coming to a head.

"Abby, I really need those records as soon as you can," he pleaded.

"I already sent them McGee. Check your inbox."

"Thanks Abs."

"Timmy, it just can't be them…I…" Abby had lost her certainty and was now growing increasingly distressed.

"We'll figure it out Abs."

"Take care of Gibbs and be safe!"

"I will." With that he signed off and went to find Gibbs.

* * *

Warm, white light blinded his corneas, overloading his eyes, so that he was blind to everything except for a faint outline hovering over him.

"This must be heaven." Tony thought to himself. "Didn't really expect to end up here, but I'm not going to complain."

The outline above him was becoming clearer. It was definitely in the shape of a woman. Her hair fell around her face in soft curls.

Tony tried to remember exactly how he had died. Was it the bullet wound or had the bomb exploded? His mind felt fuzzy and the details of his last moments were hazy. He did remember Ziva bandaging his wound. Then he had missed a few minutes when he decided to rest his eyes. The next thing he could remember Ziva was scaling one of the walls in the building where they were trapped. At the time he had been angry that she had clearly kept her superhero skills to herself all these years, for only some kind of superhuman bit by a radioactive spider could scale walls like that.

The next thing he could recall was the sound of a scuffle. Then everything had gone eerily quiet. He felt his body being dragged across the floor, pain coursing through his midsection. Then nothing.

The woman standing over him was now recognizable, her form definite. It was his mother. Not the one from his early memories covered in blood, but the one who was full of life and laughter. She looked down at him and smiled.

"Mom?"

"Shh. Just rest. Everything will be ok." Her hand brushed his hair from his forehead in a calming gesture. Although a smile played on her lips, her eyes were full with sadness. Tony wondered at this, but was more concerned with why he was still laying on the ground.

"Did the bomb go off?" Tony could feel her hair brush his arm as she knelt beside him. It was warm and soft.

"Yes."

"Where are we?" Tony tried to move his head and look around, but it was impossible for him to lift. He could only see the light and his mother. Why couldn't he move?

"That does not matter. Save your strength."

"Mom. I missed you." He was happy to see her, even if it did mean he was dead. He hadn't realized just how much he missed her face, the warm chocolate eyes, the glow of her skin, her white smile.

"I know."

"Why did you have to go?" It was a question that had haunted him his entire life.

"Shh. Rest." His mother continued stroking his hair and face. Her warm fingers leaving trails on his face. She stared down at him, and he could feel her strength surround him like a blanket. He tried to absorb some of this, still feeling so weak himself.

Tony attempted again to remember his last moments. A woman had been there with cold, cruel eyes and a face full of hatred. She had hurt Ziva. Had Selin been there?

"Ziva?" he asked his mother. What had happened to her? "Selin?" Had she done something to his partner?

"Just be quiet now." The stroking stopped, but she now clutched onto his arm.

"I should have told her." Tony suddenly felt a yawning sense of regret over the last fight he had with his partner. A feeling of loss for what could have been.

"Told her what?" It was almost a whisper.

"The truth." Tony suddenly realized that he could move his arm. Although his head still felt too heavy to lift, he experimentally moved his fingers. He could wiggle them. Next he tried to lift his arm. It too, felt heavy, but he could move it a few inches. He lifted his arm to his mother's face, cupping her cheek in his hand. "Mmm, you feel so warm." Her cheek felt like it was on fire underneath his fingers.

A tear ran down her face, running into his fingers and tracing the outline of his hand. It was cold and wet. He could feel it as it ran down his arm.

"Why are you crying?"

But there was no answer to his question. She was abruptly pulled away from him, slipping out of his line of vision. His arm fell back to his side. Again he tried to move his head but was unable. Suddenly there were two sets of hands underneath him, lifting him. He was now moving through the air, carried but these disembodied limbs.

"Tony!" he heard her call his name. The sound came from far away.

Then he was dropped to the ground again. Pain shot through his body radiating out from his stomach. He felt heat underneath him scorching his skin. The light now overhead felt like it was burning his skin also. He briefly wondered how he could still feel pain in heaven, and then he passed out.

Ziva watched as the van pulled away from the curb, leaving her partner lying on the ground outside the hospital, still slowly bleeding to death. She caught one last glimpse of him through watery eyes, before the doors slammed closed and she was left alone with her captor.

* * *

Ziva's thoughts were on her partner, not on the woman standing in front of her currently leering at her. She couldn't get the image of Tony lying on the ground out of her head. She feared that would be the last time she ever saw him alive. He had already lost so much blood when Selin had dumped him at the hospital. Ziva didn't think he would survive this, and it was all her fault. She had led them into this mess.

When they had still been trapped in the abandoned building, and after Ziva had bandaged Tony's wound, she had stood staring at the walls, desperately searching for an escape. She had realized that she could climb the wall using a combination of the cracks in the brick and a chain that was hanging from the window about halfway up the wall. When she had made it up to the window, she looked down to realize Tony had passed out. After surveying her options she decided to attempt to shoot the lock off the outside door. Before she could proceed, though, Selin had made her appearance. Ziva was helpless to do anything from her perch on the window.

"I would not do that if I were you." Selin had suggested. When Ziva turned to see her standing below her, she saw that Selin had a gun trained on Tony's head. "Come down and he lives."

Ziva had had no choice. "What do you want with us?"

"Agent DiNozzo is collateral damage. You're the one I need." Selin was sneering at her as Ziva made her way down the wall. In her mind Ziva had frantically searched for any way out of this situation, but when she reached the ground she realized that Selin was not alone. A group of armed men stood at the door, blocking her way out.

"My father won't come for me. Surely you have realized that by now."

"He was supposed to come rescue you here, but it seems he was too busy with my other distractions." Selin had actually laughed at this.

"You are wasting your time. He won't come." Ziva had been sure of that.

"We will see. Now are you going to come quietly or are you going to try something stupid?"

"I will come with you if you take Tony to the hospital first."

"Now why would I do that?"

"If you do not, I will be forced to do something 'stupid' as you say."

"Fine. But we have a quick stop to make first." With that Selin had nodded at her guards. They brought in two unconscious people, one man and one woman and set them in the corner of the room. Ziva had raised her eyebrows at Selin. "To keep your friends busy, until I am ready for them." Selin had explained. The guards had come up behind Ziva and grabbed her arms, restraining her. Without thought she had instinctively fought back. Selin had pistol whipped her across the forehead, and Ziva had passed out.

When she had woken up, she and Tony were in the back of a van speeding away down the street. She heard the explosion in the background, and wondered what Gibbs would think when he found the bodies. Would he assume they were dead? Tony had lay next to her hallucinating, his skin cold as ice from blood loss. She had tried to comfort him, but wasn't sure how much he had understood.

Now she sat in a cold dark room, expertly tied to a chair. Her mind unwillingly flashed back to the last time she had spent strapped to a chair. She couldn't stop the thoughts that now flooded her mind. Thoughts of another deranged person who had captured her. Ziva willed herself to think about Tony. She fought to bring the image of his smile to her face, but she kept seeing his pale lifeless expression instead.

Ziva raised her eyes to Selin, who finally spoke. "Now we call your father."

* * *

**Ok so the reason this chapter took so long was that I wasn't sure if I wanted to reveal Tony and Ziva's fate in this chapter or the next. I went back and forth many times, but I finally decided not to torture you anymore and let you know what happened in this chapter. So I hope you like it. Thanks for reading, reviewing and alerting!**


	14. Chapter 14

Tony's eyes fluttered open and slowly took in his surroundings. He quickly realized he was lying in a hospital bed staring at the ceiling. To his right he could hear the beep of the heart monitor, and to the left was the I.V. that he now felt attached to his hand. With his brain so foggy from pain medicine, it was hard for him to remember just how he had come to be here. The previous hours of his day were lost in a fuzzy grey haze.

He closed his eyes and struggled to recall the circumstances that had landed him in this hospital bed. For some reason he kept having memories of talking to his mother, but that was ludicrous since she had died a long time ago. There were also memories of being locked in a large room and then a bumpy ride in the back of a dirty van. The van was the most unclear of his recollections, but he remembered talking to someone. Someone he had thought was his mother.

Ziva.

"Oh, God," Tony thought, as he suddenly remembered that his partner had been the one in the van with him. The one trapped with him. The one who was still being held captive by Selin.

But he couldn't understand why he had been left at the hospital and Ziva hadn't. Because now he realized that he had been hallucinating, most likely from loss of blood, and had thought Ziva was his dead mother. Now he realized that Selin's men had carried him out of the van and laid him on the ground outside the hospital, driving away with Ziva still inside.

What was it that Selin had said? Something about Eli and the fact that he had not shown at the empty building? Tony wasn't certain, but he had no doubt that Eli was at the heart of this. Whatever_ this _was.

A nurse entered his room just then and smiled when she saw that he was awake. She made her way over to his bed checking his stats on the monitor. "It is nice to see you awake Mr. DiNozzo. My name is Neira, and I have been taking care of you since you came out of surgery."

"Surgery?" Tony's voice croaked. Neira poured him a cup of water and held it to his lips as he sipped.

"Yes. You were shot in the abdomen. You lost a considerable amount of blood, but the doctor performed a transfusion and was able to repair the damage from the bullet. Do you remember what happened to you?"

"Damage?" Tony's mind was still working at a slow pace, and he was having a hard time processing all this.

"It was minimal. You were very lucky. The doctor will be able to explain more. He will be in shortly now that you are awake."

"How did you know my name?" Tony's mind finally caught up with the conversation.

"Your I.D. was in your pocket."

"My boss. Can you call…" Tony attempted to sit up, urgent to talk to Gibbs and tell him about Ziva's continued imprisonment and Selin's plans. He felt a sharp pain in his side and couldn't suppress a groan.

"I believe he is already on the way. Just lay back and rest."

"I really need to talk to him. It's urgent." Tony persisted.

"You really need to lie back down Mr. DiNozzo." The nurse pushed at his shoulders, trying to get him to calm down.

"No. This is a matter of life and d…" Before Tony could finish that sentence he heard someone shouting in the hallway.

"I don't care what the rules are! I need to see my agent. Either tell me which room he's in or get the hell out of my way."

"Sir. Please calm down. I must insist…" Another voice attempted to calm the agitated man. This one sounded nervous and edgy.

"_I_ insist you tell me where he is now! Or I'll search every room in this damn hospital if I have to."

"Sir. If you will just…"

"Room number. Now."

"Second door down this hallway." The man finally gave in with an audible sigh.

Tony was sitting up, thanks to Neira, grinning when Gibbs came striding into his room sporting a small smirk and followed closely by McGee. Neira slipped out past the entering agents, giving them a moment of privacy.

"Where the hell ya been DiNozzo?" Gibbs joked as a way of greeting.

"Nice to see you too, boss."

"You alright Tony?" Gibbs' concern flashed in his eyes as he stared down at his wounded senior agent.

"Yea, I guess so. I was shot. I don't know what they told you, but the nurse said the doctor was able to fix everything. I haven't talked to him yet. Just woke up." Tony wasn't sure how much Gibbs knew about what had happened to him. He didn't even know where to begin to explain. "Boss, I know how you feel about apologies, but I'm sorry."

"It's ok Tony. Just glad you're ok."Gibbs reached out and clamped a hand on Tony's shoulder, giving it a light squeeze.

"No, boss. We shouldn't have left like that. It was stupid and…"

"DiNozzo." Gibbs cut him off. "Just tell me what happened. Where's Ziva?"

Tony gave Gibbs a brief rundown on what he could remember of their entrapment and the van ride, keeping just to the most significant facts. "Boss, I think Selin is trying to lure Eli out. She said something about being angry that Eli didn't show up when we were trapped. I think she's going to use Ziva to get to Eli."

"Eli didn't fall for that the first time, what makes Selin think he will now?"

"I don't know, but she seemed pretty sure he would show up this time. Gibbs, I'm worried about what she'll do to Ziva when Eli doesn't show." Tony let his fear show for the first time unable to stop the panic that bubbled up inside. Ziva was the strongest person he knew, but even she couldn't survive a bullet to the brain.

"Me too DiNozzo." Gibbs was quiet for a minute, thinking. "McGee stay here with Tony. I'm going to talk to the doctor and then we're gonna find Ziva."

McGee sat in the chair next to Tony's bed. "You really ok Tony?"

"Not really Probie." Tony admitted, his head falling back onto the pillow. He was blaming himself for their initial capture. If he hadn't needed to get some air, this never would have happened.

"Where were you guys going anyway?" McGee still couldn't understand why they had wandered off in the first place.

"It doesn't matter. What matters is that Ziva is still out there."

"We're gonna find her." McGee was positive Gibbs would be able to find Ziva.

"I just hope it's in time."

* * *

Before they had even left the hospital Gibbs was on the phone with Abby. McGee noticed that this caused them to get more than a few dirty looks from the hospital staff, but Gibbs was completely unaware of the attention.

"Gibbs! How's Tony? Is he out of surgery yet? Did you find Ziva? Is she ok? Oh and tell McGee that I was right. I knew those bodies you found weren't them!" Abby bounced up and down in her lab. In one hand she held her Caf-Pow and in the other her hippo Burt, who was always there to help her through these hard times. Ducky had also joined her in the lab, each seeking out the others comfort. They had been waiting for any news since they heard that Tony had shown up in a hospital in Tel Aviv. Abby had been freaking out about why there was still no word on Ziva.

Ducky added his own greeting to the call. "Yes Jethro, how was Anthony's surgery? Were there any complications?"

"Tony's going to be fine. He's out of surgery. Doc says the wound was pretty superficial; lost a lot of blood, but they gave him a transfusion."

"Any word on Ziva, Jethro?" Ducky asked cautiously, hoping that no news was good news.

"Selin's still holding her. Wants to lure Eli out. That's why I'm calling. Abs, is there anything you could find on Selin that can point us to where she might be hiding?"

"Actually I just found something, but I don't know if it will help you find her." Abby suddenly sounded really anxious. "It's not good Gibbs. So not good."

"What is it Abs?"

"Uh, well I finally was able to get into those surveillance photos that Roberts was sent to buy."

"The camp in Africa?" Gibbs wondered how that fit in now.

"Actually the pictures aren't just of a camp."

"Then what else are they of?"

"They're surveillance photos. Ones of Ziva."

"Ziva?"

"Yea, looks like they go back for a while. Most of them are before she even came to NCIS. There's a bunch of them in Israel. I sent a copy of the file to McGee."

Gibbs was too stunned to speak.

"Gibbs, you know this means that Director Vance…" Abby trailed off, not wanting to finish that thought due to its explosive implications.

"Vance knew someone was after Ziva." Gibbs ground his teeth together in anger. It was time for the Directors of these agencies to start telling the truth. He was going to squeeze it out of them one way or another. And they might not like his method of extraction.

A thought suddenly occurred to Abby. "Gibbs, do you think Roberts knew at the meet?"

"He must have once he saw Ziva. Might be why his guys grabbed us."

"Why would Vance send her then?"

"Maybe he wanted to see if Roberts knew exactly what he was buying? See what he would do once he saw her? I don't know. But I'm sure as hell gonna find out."

Gibbs hung up without a farewell, rage fueling his actions. It was time for a reckoning.

* * *

Gibbs entered Eli's office to once again find the old friends together. Vance looked up and straight into the steely blue-eyed stare that was a Gibbs signature. In that moment he knew a second of disquiet unlike any he had ever known, wondering just what Gibbs might do. Leon was sure that Jethro had just discovered what he had been keeping from him.

"Gibbs. Let me explain." Vance figured it best to get straight to the point.

"Explain what, Leon? Why you ordered us here? Or why you didn't tell me what this was really about? _Or_ why you were following one of my agents?"

"Ziva wasn't being followed. At least not by us." Vance insisted.

"I had those photos taken, when Ziva was with Mossad. Somehow they ended up in the Navy's hands when she went to work at NCIS." Eli stepped in to explain, not that he thought Gibbs would understand.

"You were following your own daughter?"

"I am sure you will not understand, but I was trying to protect her."

"Protect?" Gibbs scoffed.

"Yes. I believed then as I do now that there was someone who wished to harm her." Eli asserted.

"Selin." Gibbs guessed.

"Yes."

"Gibbs, I brought us here because Eli assured me that he could better protect Ziva with her close by."

"Well look how that turned out," Gibbs replied sarcastically. He was getting fed up with their act of innocence.

"You know I wanted to get Roberts at the meet. I thought I could stop this there. Find out why he was after Ziva. That was before I knew about his mother." Vance attempted to explain.

"Something else we should have been informed of from the beginning." Gibbs retorted.

"Yes, well everything would have been fine had Ziva not slipped past security." Eli still seemed unwilling to admit his own guilt in this disaster. "I knew Selin was looking for her back then. She wanted to use my children to get to me. When Ziva went to Washington, Selin was unable to find her. I made sure of that. However, she began to look again a few months ago."

"And you thought if she found out where Ziva was now, you could catch her before she did anything." Gibbs was amazed at the arrogance of this man.

"Yes, I wanted to end this once and for all."

"Why wasn't I told the particulars Leon?"

"We knew Selin was tied up in this attack. Stopping it was what mattered. Besides we couldn't know for sure that she was after Ziva. Despite Eli's convictions, there was no intel to suggest any connection. Of course at the time I didn't know of the connection between Eli and Selin." Vance's excuses seemed week, considering the situation they were now in.

Gibbs ran a hand through his hair in frustration. He was annoyed and tired, but mostly he was worried about Ziva and if they would find her before something terrible happened. "So what you're telling me, is that everything you two have done up until now has been to_ protect_ Ziva?"

The two men at least had the common sense to look guilty at Gibbs' pronouncement.

"Is that everything? Because I swear, if you two lie anymore, I'll find a way to make sure you never 'direct' anything or anyone ever again."

Vance looked pissed that Gibbs would have the nerve to threaten him, but Eli just sported a small smirk, certain that Gibbs meant every word of his threat. Maybe Director David should have been angry, but how could he fault a man who cared that much for his daughter.

"There is nothing else."

Gibbs glared at them a minute longer, wanting to be positive they weren't withholding anything else. He was glad to see them both shift nervously. "Now what are you doing to find Ziva? Selin hasn't contacted you again?"

"Not yet. I was sure she would have by now." And as if someone had overheard their conversation, the phone began to ring. Eli picked it up and spoke into it in. Of course he didn't use English, so neither Gibbs nor Vance had a clue what was said.

Eli returned the phone to the cradle and turned to the other two men in his office. "Selin has made contact. She wants me to meet her, or Ziva dies. She insists I go alone."

* * *

"Your father is on his way. Soon this will all be over." The smile on the old woman seemed to stretch from ear to ear, causing her wrinkles to crease in unflattering crescents on both sides of her mouth. The effect gave her an eerie snake-like look, one not unsimilar to her son's Ziva had witnessed just a few short days ago.

Could it really be only days since the meet in the café? Ziva felt weary with exhaustion, willing her body to stay alert, searching for any means of escape. She thought back on all that had occurred in such a short time. Her body ached, sore from its unnatural position tied to a chair. Although she might never admit it, all she wanted was to crawl into her bed and sleep for a week. She promised herself that if she survived this, she would take off work and do just that.

Unable to stop the droop of her eyelids, Ziva decided to rest her eyes for a minute. Visions flashed through her mind from the past 24 hours. One memory impossible to erase. Tony lying on the ground, bleeding, his breathing slowed. She had periods where she felt he must be dead, and then others where optimism and hope won out. In a particularly dark moment, she wondered if she wouldn't be seeing him again soon, in death. But now Ziva's anger began to build again, fueling her desire to survive.

"What will you do when my father does not show? When he sends a team instead? Kill me? Then you lose the only leverage you have left." Ziva decided it was time to turn the tables.

"He will come." Selin seemed positive of that.

"You obviously do not know my father at all then." Ziva retorted.

"I wish I did not know him so well. Then maybe you and I would not be here right now."

Confused, Ziva asked, "What are you talking about?"

"You think you know, but you do not even know half of what your father is capable of."

"Stop being so evasive. Either tell me what the hell you are talking about or shut up until someone gets here. I'm tired of listening to you." For that Ziva earned a smack across the mouth. She felt the inside of her lip split and tasted the metallic flavor of blood on her tongue. She would remember this, and when she was free of these ties Selin would pay.

"If that is what you want. I will tell you the truth. Something I am sure your father never told you."

"I have no illusions about my father anymore. There is nothing you can say that would surprise me."

"Really? We will see." Selin's smile was now harsh and her eyes held a bitter gleam. She sat down in a chair across from Ziva and began her story. "When I met Eli, I was young and naïve. Stupid might be a better word. He knew that my brother was a radical and our family had ties to Hamas, so he convinced me to spy on my brother for Mossad. At the time I actually believed that peace could one day be possible. That the work I was doing would help bring that about. All I wanted was an end to the killing."

Selin laughed to herself as if that thought was ridiculous. "But that was merely the beginning for me." Selin's eyes took on a far-away look, remembering that girl she had been so long ago. "One day I gave your father intel on a meeting my brother was having with his cell. They were planning something. For some reason my brother changed the location of the meeting at the last moment. Instead my mother, grandmother, and two sisters were the only ones home that night when Mossad raided the house. They were all killed."

Selin swallowed, still affected by the loss of those she had held dear. Ziva didn't want to feel for this woman, but couldn't help but feel sorry about the loss of those innocent lives.

"My father couldn't have known about the change. It was a tragic accident. You do all this for that?"

"No. He didn't know. But they could not have taken five seconds to see who was inside the house first. No, they were too eager. They wanted blood, and they got it. Eli knew how much my family meant to me. And even though he knew that, he chose to betray me anyway." Selin broke off and stood up. The fire returned to her eyes. Her obvious hatred written in the hard lines of her face.

"He knew what I had done for Mossad. I had spied on my own brother. But he decided that I would be their scapegoat. He convinced everyone that I was really a mole for Hamas, and that I had given him false intel on purpose. He made everyone believe that I had set them up to make the Israelis look bad. That I knew who would be there that night, and how it would look when they killed a bunch of defenseless women. They all believed that I had my own family killed to support the cause." Selin spat the words out, her anger growing with every sentence.

Ziva desperately hoped that this was all a lie. That her father would never do something that sick. She knew he would go far to save the name of Israel, but this was unbelievable. Somewhere deep inside, though, she knew he would do anything to protect his country. Anything. No matter the cost.

"He turned me into a traitor. I lost my entire family that day, except for my brother. I vowed that Eli would know what it is like to lose his own family. To feel the pain I feel every day. And now you have killed my son, my Milo. Your death will mean twice as much to me."

Surprise shot through Ziva's eyes. How had she known that Ziva was the one who had shot Roberts? No one had survived the alleyway shoot out except her teammates.

"Yes. I know you were the one that shot him."

Ziva suddenly felt a frisson of fear. There was no way the woman in front of her was letting her walk out of this room alive. She now knew that only one of them would be alive at the end of all this. Ziva decided that she liked herself a whole hell of a lot better, and realized it was time to form a solid escape plan.

"I did not know who he was."

"And if you had, that would have stopped you?" Selin questioned, knowing what the answer would be. "No. We would be in the same place we are now. It has been a long time coming. I have been looking for you for over five years."

"That's a lot of time to waste." Ziva remarked acidly.

"It was well worth it. Just like it was with your brother and sister."

Ziva's throat went dry and the room suddenly seemed as if it were sucked dry of air. Her heart beat erratically in her chest. She had to force herself to ask, "What do you mean?"

"Oh, you do not think it is a coincidence that both your siblings are now dead. I told you that I dedicated my life to destroying Eli's family. And I had just as much fun planning their deaths, as I did yours."

Bile rose up in Ziva's throat, and she had to force herself to choke it back down. There was no way what this woman was saying could be true. No. No. Tali's death was an accident. She was in the wrong place at the wrong time. And Ari. Well he chose his own path. No. Selin was lying, trying to shake her. She couldn't let her do this.

"You don't believe me do you? Do not be stupid Ziva. You were always the smartest one. That is why I saved you for last."

Black dots floated in front of Ziva's face, and her head felt alarmingly light. She was afraid she was very close to passing out. Sweat poured down her forehead, dripping down her back. Her breathing became shallow and quick. She struggled to maintain consciousness as Selin continued.

"Your sister was easy. Too easy in fact. All I had to do was order that bombing. And poof! She was gone." Selin walked circles around Ziva, still stuck on the chair, growing increasingly more gleeful as Ziva became more and more agitated. "Your brother, now he was a bit tougher. But still too easy for my tastes. He already nursed anger towards your father; all I had to do was poison his mind a little. Plus your father put him right in my path by sending him into Hamas."

"But in the end, you took care of him for me. I wonder how he would have felt if he knew that your father had nothing to do with his mother's death. That it was me all along."

Ziva, unable to control her body, felt tears rolling down her face. Each tear streaked through the coating of dust and dirt that caked her face. In her mouth, Ziva was biting down on the inside of her cheeks so hard that blood had filled her mouth. As much as she tried to persuade herself that the words Selin spoke were untrue, they had a ring of truth to them she could not deny. Her family had been ripped apart by this woman standing in front of her. A white-hot fury built up inside of her as she watched this woman cackle and screech in front of her. This woman was the reason for the pain her family had suffered. She suddenly felt the desperate need to be free, to wrap her fingers around Selin's throat.

Ziva forced herself to take a deep and ragged breath, willing her body to listen.

"And now it's time for your death. Don't worry it won't be quick. It will be long and sweet. And your father will get to witness it all when he arrives." Selin's smile grew even bigger if that was possible.

It was that smile that gave Ziva the extra strength in that moment. And with a cry from somewhere deep in her throat, she broke free of her bindings and lunged forward at her murderer.


	15. Chapter 15

**I don't own NCIS, but I would love to!**

* * *

The rage now fueling her actions, caused Ziva to overestimate, and when she lunged for Selin she took the old woman down, but quickly went sprawling over top of her. She hit the ground hard and all the air was forced out of her lungs. For a minute Selin was too surprised to react, unable to believe that Ziva had broken free of her bindings, but she quickly regained her senses.

Once she could breathe again, Ziva began to get up, looking for her weapons that had been confiscated as well as any means of escape.

"Not so fast." Selin cackled and grabbed her by the back of the head, swinging Ziva around. This caused Ziva to lose her balance and she was once again lying supine on the floor. The old woman smiled down at her, her face eager for a fight. Ziva planned on giving her one. Selin attempted to stomp on her face, but Ziva's ninja reflexes allowed her to easily dodge the boot coming towards her head.

"You will have to do better than that if you are still planning on killing me." Ziva mocked.

From her position on the floor, Ziva swiftly kicked out her leg, catching Selin in the back of the knees, causing her to come crashing down next to her. Ziva reached around and removed her knife from its hiding place on the back of her belt. Her arm swung around to swipe at the woman who had made it her mission to destroy the David family. Years of anger and pain washed over Ziva; the helplessness she had felt when Tali died, the pain of Ari's betrayal. Now she had finally found an outlet for her anguish. Every feeling she had ever bottled up now came tumbling out, strengthening her weary body.

As Ziva's arm came around, Selin reached up with both hands and grabbed it, stopping her progress. Selin twisted, causing Ziva to loosen her grip on the blade. Ziva's other hand took a swing and connected with Selin's face. When she pulled back, blood now dripped from the older woman's nose. The sight of the blood causing a reaction inside of her, a lust to see more.

Selin let go of Ziva after the punch to the face, but scrambled up to a standing position before Ziva could take another swipe with her blade. She wiped a hand across her face and looked down at the blood on her sleeve. "Oh this will make killing you even more satisfying. I have always liked to play with my food before I eat it." A smile stretched across Selin's face, displaying just how much she was enjoying their fight. The leer in her eyes causing Ziva's stomach to lurch.

"I am going to make you wish you had never been born." Ziva retorted, her fury growing deep inside of her. She quickly got up and fell into an easy fighting stance. Her arm making broad sweeps with her knife, but Selin was able to dodge them effectively. The woman may be advancing in years, but Ziva had to admit that Selin was still quick and agile.

"You're father made me wish that a long time ago." With a yell, Selin charged Ziva, pushing her back against the wall. Both arms grabbed Ziva's knife hand, beating it against the wall. With a clatter, the knife dropped to the hard floor. Before Selin could stoop to pick it up, Ziva used the edge of her foot to punt it across the room, where it lodged itself into the wall.

The next thing Ziva knew was Selin's fist landing a blow across her temple, momentarily causing her vision to go black. She felt blood trickling slowly down her face. Bringing her arm up, Ziva was able to deflect another blow, while simultaneously pushing Selin backwards. The two women sparred for a minute, each desperately attempting to land another punch, but both were successful in stopping their opponent.

"You should give up now. Make it easier on yourself." Selin taunted, her breathing becoming more ragged.

"I will stop when you are dead," Ziva retorted through gritted teeth.

"You will not win."

"Why not? I am stronger, younger, and have more stamina."

"Because outside that door, there are five armed guards who have orders to shoot to kill."

Ziva had to admit that she hadn't thought that far into her escape plan, but she was sure she could find some way to take the men out and she wasn't going to allow Selin to distract her just now.

While Ziva fought she searched for her weapons, spotting her guns lying on a table next to the door. She tried to steer their fight in that direction, but Selin sensing her plan, put herself between Ziva and the guns. This caused Selin to split her focus and Ziva was able to land two more punches, one to the chin and another to the gut. Selin doubled over, the wind temporarily knocked out of her.

Ziva made a move towards the door but Selin slid out her foot, tripping her. Once again Ziva found herself on the floor. This time she rolled and was able to maintain her forward progress. She now crawled on her hands and knees. Her hand reached out and was about to grab the handle of her gun when Selin took the opportunity of her position to kick Ziva hard in the ribs.

"Umpf." Ziva couldn't stop the sound of pain that escaped her lips. She brought her knees up to prevent another attack, but Selin was able to get in another before she was successful. Ziva heard, rather than felt, one of her ribs crack with a sickening crunch. Her breathing now became extremely painful. Selin kicked her again, so that Ziva was now lying on her back staring at the ceiling.

Selin stood over her, a wicked grin on her face. She sank down onto Ziva's chest causing her to let out another cry of pain. Her fingers found their way to Ziva's throat.

In that moment, panic gripped Ziva's insides. She knew that she was going to die here, on the floor in a dusty old room, staring up at an ugly watermark on the ceiling above. The anger that had burned inside of her suddenly left her body, replaced by an almost calm acceptance. Her will to fight extinguished, pain engulfing her body and heart. Pain for all she had lost. Pain for the family she had never really had in Israel. And pain for the family she had found at NCIS.

Pain for what could have been.

Selin's hands tightened around Ziva's throat. Still she fought to breath, instinctively clawing at the old woman's arms, her legs kicking out behind her. Her vision began to blur and her lungs burned with the need to breathe. Tears leaked from the corners of her eyes, making trails into her thick hair.

"This was not how I wanted to do this, but it will have to do. Finally this will all be over." Selin's words quietly whispered to her.

With that the world went black.

* * *

"If you're going, I'm going with you." Gibbs couldn't believe Eli was actually going after his daughter this time. Especially since every other time he had refused to. What was so different now? What had made this stubborn man change his mind?

The truth was that Gibbs really couldn't have cared less at that moment. He was just glad that they finally knew Ziva's location. And he wasn't going to be left out of the rescue mission.

"Agent Gibbs, I do not think that is a wise decision." Eli protested.

"And why not?"

"Selin was adamant that I come alone. And we both do not want to upset her when my daughter's life is in her hands." Eli made a good point, but Gibbs refused to yield.

"She meant, not to send a team. She won't even notice me."

"I am sure she we will. She is very observant." Eli was beginning to get frustrated at this man's obstinance.

"Look we're wasting time arguing. I'm not going to back down. And you need some sort of backup."

"Very well. I see arguing with you is pointless. But if this costs Ziva her life…"

"It will still be your fault." Gibbs finished.

* * *

Eli and Gibbs pulled up outside the building that Selin had selected for her prison. Each took a moment to survey the situation. Eli knew how dangerous and futile this might be, but he could not let Ziva down again. He wouldn't let her pay for his mistakes anymore. Today he would end this battle. He took a long look at the man next to him, knowing that Gibbs had practically no trust in him. Would they be able to pull this off if they couldn't rely on one another?

"Something's wrong." Gibbs observed, breaking off Eli's thoughts. Eli looked around and sensed the same.

"There are no guards."

"Yea. You don't really believe she did all this by herself?"

"No. She must have had some help."

"DiNozzo said she had at least two guys in the van." Gibbs recalled. They had exited the vehicle and were now attempting to locate Selin's men.

"They should be posted outside." Eli felt that they were missing something. Maybe this had really all been a trap. Perhaps Ziva wasn't even here.

"They were." Gibbs nodded in the direction of the door. It was cracked open as if something was in the way of its closing. In fact there was, the foot of one guard. Gibbs and Eli made their way to the door, weapons drawn. The guard lay in the middle of the entrance way, crumpled in a heap. One foot dangled out the doorway. There was no obvious sign of injury so Gibbs knelt down and felt for a pulse. There was a weak one, but it was there. He informed Eli, and they continued on.

Silently Gibbs followed Eli up the stairs, just waiting for someone to pop out. He wondered to himself what the hell was going on here. Who had taken that guard out? And where was he or she now?

As they reached the third floor landing, they finally ran into someone conscious. One of Selin's men stood on the floor above them looking a bit dazed. When he registered their presence shots rang out in the stairwell. Gibbs and Eli backpedaled down the stairs and used the upper floor for cover. Bullets whizzed past, pinging off the metal of the railings.

When Gibbs was able to get a clear look at the guard he saw that he sported a nasty head wound. It looked like he had been whacked with the barrel of a gun across the forehead. The two on one battle didn't give Selin's man much advantage, and he was only able to last a few seconds longer. Then Gibbs pumped two shots into the man's chest and Eli finished him off with one to the head.

They carefully picked their way up to the next floor, knowing that their firefight was sure to have drawn attention. Eli checked the hallway as Gibbs bent down and picked up the man's weapon, pocketing it, just in case. They had still yet to meet the person who was ahead of them taking out Selin's men. Would he be friend or foe?

* * *

When Ziva opened her eyes, it was to the shock that she was still alive, and the realization that Selin was no longer on top of her. She wasn't sure where her captor was or why she had stopped choking her, but at this moment, she wasn't about to complain. Her body instinctively tried to take in large gulps of air, but the rib that was poking her lung was making that very painful. Each breath was like being stabbed in the chest with a very long, very sharp blade. She attempted to lay very still, but her body was wracked with coughs. Her throat burned, and with each cough she could taste blood fill her mouth. The blood wasn't entirely unwelcome though, as it provided some lubrication to her sore throat.

Ziva fought to bring her breathing under control. She began to count her breaths. One, two, three in. One, two, three out. Over the pounding in her ears from her increased heart rate, she could hear nothing, and was unaware if Selin was still in the room. She wasn't certain how long she lay like that, counting her breaths and bringing her heart rate to a normal rhythm, but eventually she was aware that there was someone else in the room with her.

From what she could tell only from listening, there was some sort of scuffle going on towards the far side of the room. It sounded as if there were now two people in the room. Definitely fighting. She had just heard the unmistakable crunch of a nose breaking. But who was it? Selin? And who else? Surely her father hadn't really come to get her? After all the past heartache she wasn't naïve enough to hope for that.

But someone was here. And whoever it was, was distracting Selin for the time being. Ziva had just realized she was still lying only feet away from the door and more importantly her gun. She moved a little experimentally to see just how bad her ribs were. Pain shot through her chest, causing a sharp intake of breath. Clearly sitting up was going to be a problem. Ziva turned her head and realized that her knife was still stuck in the wall just a foot away from where she now lay. It seemed like a more attainable goal, so she decided to reach for it. The hilt was just out of reach. She would have to try to move.

Without moving the upper part of her body too much, Ziva tried to push herself towards the knife. Her legs propelled her body across the floor. With her arm fully extended she reached out and clasped her hand around the hilt of the knife and yanked. It was wedged into the wall and took a few good tugs to remove it. Panting, Ziva brought the knife to her chest and tried to catch her breath.

She lay for a minute concentrating her strength. When she sat up to take aim her breath caught in her chest, and not just because of her broken ribs.

Ziva was completely and utterly shocked at the two people now wrestling on the floor. One of them of course was Selin. And the other was Tony.

Tony? Her mind fought to wrap itself around this idea. Last she saw him, he was on death's door. Now he was on the floor fighting Selin. Ziva shook her head, knowing that she might only get one chance to get this right. She knew a second of hesitation, where she wondered if she should do this with a set of broken ribs, but she decided to throw caution to the wind.

Ziva took aim and threw. The knife hit Selin square in the back of the chest, right where Ziva knew her heart to be. With a grunt the old woman went rigid in her stance over Tony and fell to the floor with a thump. Tony pushed Selin off of him and lay panting at the ground clutching his side. It was then that Ziva came to her senses.

"What the hell are you doing here?" she exclaimed, at the same time both extremely angry and completely grateful for his presence.

"Rescuing you! What does it look like I'm doing?" He said this as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

"I don't need to be rescued," she snapped, unsure exactly why she was mad at him.

"Uh, I beg to differ. When I came in here, that bitch was choking the life out of you." Tony had pushed himself into a sitting position and was now leaning against the wall. His hand still clamped down on his side.

"I would have been fine." Ziva wasn't actually positive this was the truth, but she wasn't going to admit that. In the meantime she had managed to pick herself up and was now leaning against the opposite wall staring at him, still in shock.

"Sure you would have," he replied sarcastically.

"I don't need you to be my white horse."

He smiled at her incorrect idiom usage. "The term is white knight or I guess technically he could be riding a white horse. But that's not the point."

"Then what is?"

"The point is, I know you don't _need_ me to save you."

"Then why do you keep doing it? I do not need your protection. Especially now, when you have just been shot! You look like you have aggravated your injury." She nodded towards the hand he had covering his bandages. Ziva couldn't believe he had left the hospital and come here. He must have just recently gotten out of surgery.

"I had to. I was the only one who knew where you were."

"How did you know?" she asked, suddenly really curious as to how he found her.

"That's not important right now."

"Why did you not just tell Gibbs?"

"I tried. Couldn't find him. I, uh, look, I lost a lot of blood. I might not have been thinking completely straight."

"When have you ever?" It was her turn for sarcasm.

"When it comes to you, probably never," he replied truthfully, shocking them both into a stunned silence. They stared at each other, neither speaking, for a minute. Then Tony began to one arm crawl his way over to his partner, one hand maintaining its hold on his side. When he got over to her he slumped down next to her with a groan.

"Are you alright?" They asked each other simultaneously. Each smiled and paused.

Tony took the lead. "Ziva, can you stand up?"

"I don't know. I think I have at least one or two broken ribs, as well as many bruised ones. What about you?" Ziva turned her head and looked at her partner. A sheen of sweat had broken out on his face, but she didn't know if that was from the fight or his injury. Surely fighting right after surgery was never a good idea. She silently wondered if he might be bleeding internally.

"'M fine." His breathing was becoming more labored.

"How did you get here? Do you even have a weapon? Or a phone?" Now that the adrenaline was fading and she had time to think, there were a lot of questions that sprung to mind.

"Took a cab. And I took a gun from one of the guards downstairs."

The guards. Ziva had totally forgotten about them. "How did you get past them?"

"Wasn't that hard. I've picked up a few of your ninja skills through the years." Tony joked, not wanting her to see how badly he was really feeling.

"All five."

"Five? I only saw three."

"Hmm. Perhaps Selin was exaggerating." Ziva wondered how they were going to get out of here if they couldn't even get up. If Selin was telling the truth, that still left two more guards unaccounted for and neither of them could fight in this state. Turning serious Ziva asked him, "Why did you come here, all alone, to save me?"

"You're my partner." Tony gave the standard answer.

"That is not why."

"I don't know. Maybe I've got a screw loose. Who knows? When it comes to you, I…I just…I had to come." He ended, as if that explained everything.

Ziva sighed. Hadn't she earlier agreed to go with Selin, forfeiting her life, to save him? It seemed they both had made some stupid decisions. Stupid decisions that might have saved their lives.

After they had both been quiet for a while, Tony asked, "You know what I don't get?"

"What?"

"When I was in the hospital earlier, I was watching TV. And like sixty percent of the shows and movies are from America and in English. I don't buy this whole act you have going. The one where you pretend you don't know anything about American pop culture. I think it's all a sham so you can appear exotic and mysterious and sexy."

Ziva smiled and shook her head. "I did not have a lot of time for TV when I was with Mossad."

"Ok. I get that, but you haven't been doing this your whole life. Come on."

"Tony. I think we need to try to get up now."

"Don't change the subject," he protested.

"I am not. We need to move before one of the guards finds us." She might be changing the subject, but they really did need to get out of here.

"Fine." Tony pushed himself up onto his feet. His balance seemed a little precarious for a moment, but he was able to right himself. With his free hand he reached down and took Ziva's hand, hauling her to her feet. Ziva was unable to hold in a cry of pain, her arm clutched at her side. Tony looked concerned, but Ziva forced a weak smile to pacify him.

They grabbed onto each other for support and made their way to the door. Tony grabbed Ziva's weapons, handing one to her. He smiled to himself thinking of the picture they must make at this moment. Because he had one hand holding onto her and the other grasping a gun, he no longer could cover his injury. If Ziva had been able to see it, she would have been horrified to know he was bleeding again, his bandages soaked through.

Tony reached for the door handle, but stopped midway. "You know I forgot to tell you. I like your apartment." His voice suddenly became high and raspy. Ziva turned to look at him and was shocked to see him begin to fall. In her current state, much as she tried, she couldn't catch him properly. He went down to his knees and she awkwardly held him under his arms. At that moment the door opened and Ziva instinctively pointed her gun at the incoming strangers, who were in turn pointing guns at them.

"Aba." Standing in the doorway was Ziva's father, followed closely by Gibbs.

"Gibbs." Tony stared at him with a mixture of wonder and fear.

"Ziva?" Eli replied, confused as to what they had just walked in on.

"DiNozzo?" Gibbs looked pissed and relieved all at the same time as he took in this strange scene.

With that Tony fell the rest of the way to the floor, taking Ziva down with him.

* * *

**Ok so this chapter took me a while to figure out because I knew how I wanted to end it, but I wasn't sure about the rest of it. The whole thing got rearranged a few times. So if it feels like filler in some places, I apologize. I hope that I was able to make it work. Also at the end, I'm not sure if its confusing or not, but Selin was holding Ziva captive in her old apartment. Thanks for the reviews. I love to know what you think and if you are enjoying the story. Also thanks to those who are new readers to the story and newly added the story to their favorites! Love ya all! **


	16. Chapter 16

I don't own NCIS, but I would love to!

* * *

Tony awoke to find himself back in the hospital, which wasn't exactly a comforting feeling. Actually he felt more like he had been run over by a bus. His entire body ached, his muscles sore and tired. The gunshot wound on his lower abdomen throbbed painfully. He looked around to see if a nurse was in the vicinity and could up his pain meds. It was then he realized that it was now dark outside. He wondered what time it was. It must be the middle of the night, he thought to himself.

Gibbs sat hunched in a chair to his right, his eyes barely closed. Tony couldn't tell if he was sleeping or just resting, but he didn't want to disturb him. Surely Gibbs needed the rest; he must have been going nonstop since they had arrived. McGee sat balled up in the corner, snoring softly. This brought a small smile to Tony's face. Just then a noise caught Tony's attention. It sounded like someone whimpering.

He turned his head in the other direction, and was surprised to find Ziva in the bed across from him. She was moving around in her sleep, making little noises of distress. The noise must have been what woke him. He knew she must be dreaming, and was afraid to know what those dreams consisted of. Tony was sure that being held by Selin must have stirred up horrible memories of her previous confinement in the dessert. As he lay there he wondered just what Selin had done to Ziva before he had arrived.

What was even more surprising to Tony was the fact that Eli David sat on the other side of Ziva's bed. One hand rested on his daughter's arm and in the other rested his head. His eyes were closed as well. Tony considered the strange makeup of their hospital room at this moment. If someone had told him this was how they would all end up a few days ago, he would have said they were crazy. Now Ziva was making more noise than before, and the others in the room had begun to stir.

"Ziva," Tony whispered across the room, hoping to pull her out of the nightmare without waking anyone else.

He was shocked to see her eyes flicker open suddenly. Her brown eyes huge, as she came slowly out of her dream state. She stared at him in silence and he stared back. They were frozen in that moment, unable to speak or move.

"DiNozzo." Of course Gibbs chose that instant to wake up and break the moment.

Tony turned towards his boss, a little scared of what he might say. Ziva decided she didn't want to be a part of this conversation so she closed her eyes and pretended to be asleep.

"Boss, I…" Tony began, uncertain how he could explain adequately why he had done what he did.

"What the hell were you thinking DiNozzo?" Gibbs asked. His face was a mixture of concern and anger.

"I don't know. I guess I wasn't thinking clearly."

"Ya think?" Gibbs shook his head. He had been sitting in the hospital room for hours going back and forth feeling alternatively relieved and pissed at his senior field agent. In the end he figured he should be glad they had all survived the last few days, but he couldn't help but feel frustrated. It wasn't any one person's fault entirely, except maybe Eli's. Gibbs was still having a hard time letting go of his irritation with Eli _and_ Vance, for that matter, leaving them out of the loop. But the fact was that Tony should never have left the hospital and gone after Ziva alone and injured. "How did you even know where to find her?"

"Uh well, I called Abby…and she, uh…"

"Spit it out."

"She sent me the surveillance photos she found. Don't blame her boss. I forced it out of her." Tony wanted to make sure that Abby didn't suffer Gibbs wrath as well. She had just been trying to help. "I was bored just lying here and I felt useless. I figured I could help somehow."

"How did you even look at them?" Gibbs wondered.

"Well, I kinda charmed one of the nurses. Got her to bring me a laptop." Tony admitted. He could have sworn he heard a small snort come from Ziva's direction, but if Gibbs heard it he ignored it.

"I still don't know how you knew where she was."

"A lot of the photos were taken here, before Ziva came to NCIS. Most of them were of her in and around her old apartment here in Tel Aviv."

"How did you know where her apartment was?"

"That's where we were, when Selin found us, before she locked us in with the bomb. I think she was staking it out, hoping Ziva would come by."

"Still doesn't explain how you knew that's where she would hold Ziva."

The truth was he couldn't fully explain it. He had seen the photos and just known instantly that's where they were. "I just felt it. In my gut." He explained, hoping Gibbs would be able to understand thanks to his own experiences with gut feelings.

Gibbs shook his head. He did understand. When you felt that gut feeling, you just couldn't ignore it. "Why didn't you call me?"

"I tried. I couldn't get a hold of you or McGee. I was desperate. I just knew I had to leave at that moment or Ziva wouldn't be…" Tony trailed off unable to finish that sentence. And it had been the right decision at the time. When he had walked in and found Selin choking Ziva, he had been sure that Ziva was already dead. She just lay there, so still, not moving or breathing. He had felt a white-hot rage build inside of him and he had charged Selin causing her to let go of Ziva. He had been so angry that he had forgotten the gun in his hand till it went flying across the room, useless to anyone. All he wanted in that moment was to return the favor to Selin, to watch as the life slowly went out of her eyes.

When Ziva had woken up and started coughing, it was the sweetest sound he had ever heard. However, this had pulled his attention from Selin and their fight costing him a broken nose. But it had been worth it, to know Ziva was still alive.

"If you do anything like that again, I'll…"

"I know. I know. You'll kill me yourself." Tony supplied.

"No. I'll fire you. I know, for you, that would be worse."

* * *

The next few days passed without incident. For Team Gibbs this was a welcome change of pace, especially for the two battered agents still in the hospital. The doctors had insisted they remain in the hospital under _close_ observation, to make sure they were healing properly. Also so they didn't find a way to injure themselves further.

Tony learned that on arrival Gibbs had insisted that his agents be placed in a room together. He figured so Gibbs could keep a close eye on both of them at all times. For the foreseeable future, Tony guessed that Gibbs would be watching them very closely. The hospital staff had been unwilling to put them together, but an order from the Director of Mossad had done the trick, and in the end that was how they ended up in the same room.

Over the past few days, Tony had assumed they would get a chance to talk, but it seemed like they never got more than two minutes alone, with all the doctors, nurses, and their team members coming in and out. So they had yet to really talk about everything that had happened, and what it meant.

Ziva had been silently grateful for the lack of alone time. She still wasn't sure exactly what she wanted to say to her partner. The truth was that she was afraid. Weren't they both? Wasn't that why they were stuck in limbo all these years? She didn't want to ruin their relationship. After all they had been through she knew that she needed him in her life. And if things went wrong, she didn't want to lose him.

Truth be told, Ziva had a lot more on her mind than her relationship with Tony. She was still reeling from all the things Selin had told her about her father and her brother and sister. There were times she didn't want to believe they were true and others when she had to accept them as fact. She had yet to tell anyone what Selin had told her. Eli had tried to pull it out of her one morning, but Ziva couldn't force herself to say the words out loud. But of one thing, Ziva was certain, she had never been happier to see someone dead than that witch, Selin.

It was the third morning of their hospital stay, the day they were to be discharged. Tony had been taken for a final test by the nurses to make sure everything was healing properly, and Ziva had been left alone in their room. She was enjoying the silence with her eyes closed, when she heard someone enter. When she opened her eyes, it was to find Gibbs standing over her.

Ziva immediately felt guilty. She had yet to find a time to apologize to Gibbs for running off like they had. Even if she knew he hated apologies, she felt he deserved one.

"Gibbs, I…"

He cut her off, "Ziva."

"But, I…" He stopped her with a finger to her lips.

"It's fine. Just glad you're alive." He said, absolving her of her mistakes.

"But we never should have left like that. I wasn't thinking, and…" Ziva still fought to give him an apology.

"Ziva. What's really bothering you?"

"I don't know what you mean," she responded, playing dumb.

Gibbs just gave her his signature glare, waiting for her to speak her mind. Ziva fidgeted under his gaze. She had always been unable to withstand his stare, instantly wanting to spill all her secrets. It made her wonder how she could endure months of torture, but fell apart when Gibbs looked at her that way. She supposed it was because he was more a father to her than anyone else had ever been. And she never wanted to see that look of disappointment in his eyes.

"Selin said some things, when she had me tied up. I do not know what to believe anymore." Ziva felt so confused.

"About your father?" Gibbs asked.

"Yes. And other things."

"Like what?"

"About my family. Ari and Tali." With that she broke down, telling Gibbs all the horrible things Selin had said to her. She told him everything. "I do not know what to think. Is she the reason my family was torn apart? What would be different if my father had never betrayed her? Did he know what she was doing this whole time?" Ziva started to cry, small tears streaking her face. It seemed to her that she always broke down and cried in front of Gibbs, and she hated the weakness that showed.

Gibbs reached around and brought Ziva into a hug, attempting to soothe the pain in her. He truly didn't know how to respond. This woman had been through so much in her life, it was a miracle she was still able to stand upright. Not many people could live through what she had and survive. But that's what she was, a survivor. And he knew if anyone could handle this, it was her. Some part of him wanted to take that pain away, give her a life where she wouldn't have to experience hurt or loss like this again.

He pulled back and looked down at her. "Ziva. You can't live in the what-ifs. What happened is the past, and you can't change it. And whatever Selin said, that doesn't change who you are or what you've experienced."

"I know." She did know that, logically, but emotionally was a different story.

"You've grown so much in the past five years. You're stronger now than you ever were. Don't let her take that away from you."

"Ok." Her voice sounded small. "I will try."

"And if you need anything, I will always be here. We all will. You know that." Gibbs gave her a swift kiss on the forehead.

"I do. Thank you." Ziva gave him a small smile. She really did feel better. Just saying it all out loud had helped. She reached up and wiped her tears away, already her body felt lighter and freer. She knew she was lucky to have Gibbs in her life. She was lucky to have all of them. And in that moment she silently thanked God for that fact.

* * *

Tony had spent a large part of the last three days thinking about his mother. Although he may have been hallucinating, he still felt that seeing her the other day, had meant something. He wanted to believe that she would be proud of the man he had become. More importantly he wanted to be a man that she would have been proud to call her son. He knew that meant that it was time to make some changes in his life. This scared him more than he liked to admit, but it was finally time. Everything that had happened lately had shown him he was ready to move on and leave the past in the past. It was time to grow up.

For the first time he really did want to settle down. He even thought that having a family could be exciting instead of just frightening. It might be fun to have a few little DiNozzos running around. Of course this always brought his thoughts back to Ziva.

He knew she had been avoiding talking to him, which didn't bother him that much because the hospital was not the place for the conversation they needed to have. When they got home though, it would be a different story. Tony wasn't going to let her run away anymore. They had to make a decision one way or the other. Either they remain friends and partners, or they try for something more. Because if they weren't going to try, he needed to move on. He couldn't keep pining away for something that was never going to happen. He was stuck. They both were. And it was time to move forward.

Tony was wheeled back into his hospital room to find McGee and Ziva laughing over something she had just said.

"Hey Probie, miss my shining face already? Weren't you just here this morning?" Tony said as way of greeting.

"Of course Tony. Every moment without you is truly unbearable." McGee replied dryly.

"Gibbs and McGee are here to check us out Tony." Ziva informed him.

"We get to go home?" Tony asked with a look of longing. He couldn't wait to sleep in his own bed.

"Flight's at 1800." McGee told him with a smile. He too was glad to be going home. At the very least so Abby would stop calling him every thirty seconds. She was driving him crazy, wanting updates every minute on the team's wellbeing. He loved her, but it was getting a bit ridiculous. A part of him knew that she was just worried, rightfully so after all they had gone through, and that being thousands of miles away didn't help. He had been plenty worried himself at times, but now they were going home and things could finally get back to normal.

"Where's Gibbs?" Tony asked.

"Right here DiNozzo." Gibbs was standing in the doorway behind Tony.

"We ready to go Boss?"

"Just need you two to sign these and you're officially discharged." He held up two clipboards in his hands with their discharge papers. Gibbs handed one to Tony and one to Ziva.

"Is the Director meeting us at the airport?" Ziva asked. She had hardly seen Vance lately. He had come in to check that they were all right, but hadn't been back. She had a suspicion he felt guilty for all that had happened during their trip.

"Yea," Gibbs replied. He still wasn't eager to spend too much time with Leon, and he wasn't looking forward to being trapped on a plane with him for hours.

Soon enough they were all ready, and it was time to get wheeled out of the hospital. Ziva thought it ridiculous that they wouldn't let her walk out. After all nothing had happened to her legs. Tony on the other hand, thought it would be great fun to ride down to their waiting car. He tried to charm the nurses into letting him pop a few wheelies in his wheelchair, but they steadfastly refused.

Just before they were to go down, one last person showed up to see them off. Eli David stood in the doorway looking at his daughter.

"Ziva, may I have a word before you go?"

* * *

Ziva stood staring out the window. Her father still stood in the doorway, looking slightly unsure and a little like he might turn and run. The rest of the team had left, giving them some privacy. Part of her wished they had stayed, needing their strength.

She wasn't sure what to say to him. There was so much anger and hurt to wade through, it was exhausting. Eli had come to the hospital in the previous three days, but all their interactions had been superficial and general. He had informed her of Malachi's progress. It seemed the doctor's were hopeful he would make a full recovery, but he had a long road ahead of him thanks to extensive burn damage. They had talked about former friends of hers and other trivial things. Nothing real. Nothing important.

"Ziva, I am…" Her father had found a place to begin, but the sound of his voice caused something within her to snap.

"Did you know?" She demanded. Ziva had turned to stare at him, betrayal plainly written across her face. When he didn't answer she repeated her question more forcefully. "Did you know?"

"Know what?"

"Don't. Don't act like you do not know what I am talking about."

Eli sighed. "I knew that she wanted to hurt you. That it was revenge for what I did."

"What you did! What you did was disgusting." Ziva spit out.

"I do not have to justify my actions to you. At the time I did what I was ordered to do. I was not the Director then, only an officer. I did my job, for my country. I did what I had to do."

"Did you know? About Tali?" She had almost been afraid to ask.

"At the time, no. I believed Selin to be dead then. It was only later that I found out." Eli knew that with each word, his daughter was slipping further and further away from him. No longer was he the hero she had once held in such high esteem. Now he was the villain. The worst part, was that it might be better for her this way.

"And Ari?"

"You're brother was lost long before Selin met him. He wanted to hate me, and she used that."

Ziva's head was spinning and she felt a little dizzy. She was still having a hard time breathing thanks to her two broken ribs. She sat down on the bed and focused on breathing in an out.

"Once I knew what she was doing, I tried to protect you. It was impossible to do so here. Why do you think that I allowed you to go to Washington? I knew that you would be safer there." His words pierced through the haze in her mind.

"Is that why you had me followed?" Ziva remembered being shown the surveillance photos after her first year at NCIS, feeling hurt that her father had not trusted her.

"Yes. I wanted to make sure she couldn't get near you."

They stood in silence for a long time, each processing their own thoughts. Eli had always wanted to give all his children a life of peace and freedom. He had failed his son and daughter, but Ziva could still have those things. In fact, she did have them. In Washington, with NCIS. As much as it hurt him to see her go, he wanted that life for her.

"Ziva, I am sorry. I know that you are happy in Washington, and that is all I have ever wanted for you."

She stared at him, shocked that he had actually apologized. She wasn't sure she had ever heard him say those words to anyone before. Part of her wanted to hold onto her anger at him, at Selin, at everything that had happened to her family. But she was just so tired of being angry. It was time to move on and let go. Time to be happy.

"I know." Ziva went over to him and gave him small kiss on the cheek. "Shalom." And with that she left, moving forward and refusing to look back anymore.

* * *

**This chapter and I have been fighting all day. I think my muse is on vacation right now. Anyway, it is finally done. I think there will probably be only one or two more chapters and then we'll have reached the end. Thanks for everyone who has come this far with me, I am so glad that you are reading and enjoying the story. As usual, I am greatly appreciative of any reviews, story alerts, etc. Thanks!**


	17. Chapter 17

**Ok so this is the last chapter. I can't believe I made it. There were some struggles along the way. I actually thought this chapter would cause me the most grief, but it was surprisingly the easiest chapter to write in a long time for me. Anyway, it's all done. So enjoy.**

**I don't own NCIS, because if I did I wouldn't have to write fanfic! Haha**

* * *

Silence reined in the small elevator as it made its way up to the bullpen. No one spoke, in fact no one had spoken since the initial takeoff in Tel Aviv. Even Tony who normally was rather garrulous, even in some of the worst situations, had been strangely quiet the whole trip. They were exhausted for sure, but the trip had done more than just wear them out. It had revealed the internal strain the team was under. Gibbs and Director Vance had barely even glanced in each others' direction the entire flight. And Leon had hopped in a car and headed home to see his wife and kids the first chance he got, while the team had headed back to the Navy yard.

Finally the doors opened with their customary ding, and the team disembarked into the silent and still squadroom. As they turned the corner making their way to their desks, they were shocked by the scene that greeted them. Abby must have been missing them badly because each of their desks was adorned with festive decorations, even Gibbs' desk. Balloons, streamers, and confetti littered the tops and sides of the desks. McGee snuck a look at his boss to see just how irritated this might make him, but was surprised to find a small smile playing on Gibbs' lips.

Suddenly a high pitched scream ripped through the room as a black blur buzzed past them and into their boss's arms. "Gibbs!" Abby screamed as she launched herself at their team leader, catching him in a hug that knocked the breath out of him. "I'm so glad you're all home!" She continued to screech and jump up and down, turning to hug McGee next. As she did, Ducky and Jimmy rounded the corner. It seemed they had not been able to keep up with the nervous goth as she sprinted out of the elevator ahead of them. Gibbs made his way over to Ducky, shaking his hand in a gesture of welcome.

Abby hugged Tony next, causing him to let out a small groan of pain as she squeezed, his wound still not fully healed. "Oh sorry Tony! I tried to be careful, but I guess I don't know my own strength." She apologized.

Lastly Abby made her way over to Ziva stretching out her arms to envelope her when, "No!" The entire team had turned and yelled at Abby causing her to freeze just inches away from Ziva.

"Abs, you can't hug her."

"Don't hug Ziva."

"She has broken ribs, Abs."

They all spoke at once, trying to explain to Abby why she couldn't hug Ziva in the bone crunching way she normally did.

"Gosh guys. I know that she broke her ribs. Of course I wasn't going to give her a _normal_ hug." And with that she finished reaching her arms around Ziva, giving her a light pat on the back without bringing their bodies into contact. "See." They all breathed a sigh of relief, Ziva especially. She didn't need anything else to happen to her ribs just now. As it was she was looking at another 5 to 6 weeks of recovery until she would be allowed to return to fieldwork. That meant a lot of paperwork in her future.

Once everyone had said their hellos and greeted one another, things quieted down.

"Go home." Gibbs announced to his team. "Get some sleep. DiNozzo, David, I don't want to see you back here for a week. I mean it." Gibbs glared them both down, hoping that they might actually listen to him. When they made sounds of protest, "Don't make me stretch it to two weeks." He smiled to himself feeling like he was a parent giving them a grounding.

With that they all trooped off glad to finally be home.

The week passed quickly. Tony felt like he slept more that week than he had in the past six months total. It was very restorative. He kept himself busy with a marathon of Bond movies and even ate healthy thanks to Ducky and Abby. They cooked him food and brought it over to store in his fridge. He couldn't remember a time when his fridge had ever been this full, usually all it held were a few beer bottles and whatever leftover takeout he had from the night before.

The rest of his time was taken up with visits from the team. McGee came over and talked him into playing some video game. Although Tony teased him about the geekiness of the game, he had to admit it was kind of fun. Gibbs brought a steak and they grilled out one night. Ducky came to change his bandages and check on his progress. Abby was a trooper, and watched movies with him, letting him pick whatever he wanted. One member however, was noticeably absent. His partner.

Tony hadn't heard a word from Ziva since they had walked out of the office a week ago. Of course he heard updates on how she was doing from Ducky and Abby, even McGee, but she hadn't called him. And he hadn't called her.

It wasn't that he hadn't tried. He had picked up the phone to call her a hundred times, but always stopped himself before he hit send. Tony felt like he was in high school again, afraid to call a girl. What the heck was wrong with him, he mused. He knew he was being stubborn, but he wanted her to make the first move. Technically it wasn't even the first move. He had done that in the bathroom when he had challenged her to make something more of their relationship. Now it was up to her.

Ziva had spent the week much the same as Tony. She had received many visits and gifts of food from her friends. Mostly she had done what she had promised herself, which was to get some sleep. It bothered her that she couldn't be as physical as normal, but she forced herself to take things easy, hoping that her body would heal fast and she would be able to get back to work as soon as possible.

She knew that Tony wanted her to call, and had almost hit the send button on her phone a hundred times, but she just couldn't do it. Ziva needed time to process. It had been nice to have a week away from her partner to think clearly and objectively. For some reason when he was near, she had trouble sorting out her thoughts and emotions. Her mind became a chaotic mess. But a week away from him had let her sort things out. As an added bonus, by the end of the week she realized that she really missed him, which was actually a nice feeling.

* * *

During the week McGee had spent a lot of time in Abby's lab, trying to escape the loneliness in the squadroom. He had to admit that he actually missed Tony, and of course he missed Ziva as well. Today was the first full day back with the team, and they already had a dead marine laying downstairs in autopsy. McGee was glad to have the team back together, even if Tony and Ziva still weren't allowed to go into the field. Gibbs had let them process the crime scene, however, and now McGee was down in the lab with Abby going through their victim's computer.

"Something is wrong, Abby?" McGee said, looking up from his work.

"What Timmy?" Those were not words she wanted to hear again for a long time after the hell of the past few weeks.

"Tony and Ziva have been acting weird all day." He couldn't put his finger on it, but something was wrong with those two. More wrong than usual, anyway.

"What do you mean? I haven't noticed anything weird since you all got back." Abby's mind was already switching into worried overdrive because of McGee's concerns.

"No they were fine last week. But today, I don' t know. Something is off."

"Could you be specific?" She asked.

McGee thought for a moment, until it came to him. "They're being nice to each other. It's creeping me out."

"They're being nice? That's your problem?" Abby wasn't sure why exactly this was a problem. Wasn't McGee always complaining about their bickering?

"It's not right. Tony hasn't said one rude or crass joke all morning."

"Ya think they've been body snatched McGee? Some sort of alien mind experiment?" Abby joked, making fun of Tim's wariness. She wiggled her fingers at his head.

"This isn't a joke," McGee responded seriously. "They have actually been _helpful_ to each other." He actually shuddered physically at this thought.

"Well they did almost die together. Twice. Maybe they made a pact to be nicer to each other if they survived. It's not the worst thing in the world." Abby suggested, hoping McGee would get off this train of thought and back to the evidence.

"No. They weren't like this in the hospital in Tel Aviv. This is something else. And it's freaking me out."

Apparently he wasn't going to let it go. Abby had an idea what this all might be about, but she wasn't sure if she should share it with McGee. He must have seen the indecision on her face, however, because he asked, "What do you know? Do you know what this is all about? Abby?"

"I don't know anything," Abby insisted. Too bad she was a horrible liar.

"Yes you do. Come on, tell me," McGee demanded.

"Well it was a long time ago, so maybe it's nothing. And it doesn't mean it's happening again. I shouldn't say anything." Abby stammered out. But she couldn't very well throw him off the trail now.

"What is it?"

With a sigh of resignation she decided to fill him in. "Well you know when I was going through those surveillance photos while you were in Israel."

"The ones of Ziva?" McGee asked confused what that had to do with this.

"Yea. That's the thing. They weren't just of Ziva."

"What do you mean?"

"Um. There were some pictures of Tony too, obviously after Ziva came to NCIS."

"And?" He wanted her to get to the point.

Abby hit a few keys on her computer bringing up the photos she had uncovered. "I didn't actually send you all of the photos. Just the ones I thought were important." She scanned through the photos. There were some of Ziva outside her first apartment here in Washington. Then Tony showed up in some of the pictures. McGee wasn't surprised by this. They had all spent time at Ziva's apartment at one point. It wasn't weird that there would be photos of them together.

Abby's fingers slowed when she reached the photos that she knew would blow little Timmy's mind. Then she hit next watching as his face went from politely curious to shocked and stunned in all of ten seconds.

On the screen were his teammates locked in some sort of intimate embrace. Well, he assumed it was intimate since they had their mouths and hands on each other and a dirty little smile on each of their faces. As Abby scrolled through the photos they only got worse, showing Tony and Ziva actually making out on her couch, shot through the open blinds.

"Stop." McGee wondered if he might be sick for a moment. He had never felt more stunned in his life.

"Oh come on McGee. It can't be that much of a surprise with all the flirting they do."

"Yea, but I never…I mean that they actually would…and I….uh…" McGee stammered, unable to form a coherent thought. "You think that they are…doing this…now?"

"Well if I almost died twice within the span of two days, I would be." Abby actually thought it was a long time coming. She always knew those two belonged together. They just needed a shove in the right direction.

"They couldn't have been, you know, this whole time." McGee, for the first time, wondered just what signals and looks he had been missing between his teammates over the years.

"Obviously not McGee." Abby replied. "They've clearly dated other people. Although this does explain a lot."

"When were these taken?"

"When Gibbs was in Mexico."

Gibbs. Oh God. He could never see these photos. If he did he would blow a gasket. "Abby you have to delete these now. If Gibbs finds out, he will go berserk."

"McGee. They're evidence. I can't do that." She was offended that he would even suggest it.

"Abby." McGee warned. "If Gibbs sees these he will talk to Tony and Ziva about it. And when Ziva finds out she _will_ kill you."

Abby felt a shiver of trepidation, but she couldn't just get rid of evidence. "I can't McGee," she whined, unsure what to do.

He thought for a moment and then said, "We'll corrupt the files. Gibbs will never be able to see them but we won't actually be getting rid of them."

"That's brilliant McGee. Why didn't I think of that?"

"Let's just do it before someone else finds out."

"Ok. Pinky swear, we never tell anyone about this. Anyone." She held up her hand and they linked pinky fingers.

"Oh don't worry. I'm taking this to my grave."

* * *

Gibbs was down in autopsy getting an update from Ducky on their latest murder victim. His mind however, was still upstairs with his agents. McGee had not been the only one to notice the atmosphere in the bullpen. Tony and Ziva had really been genuinely cordial to each other all morning. It was putting Gibbs on edge, mostly because he knew that whenever there was a change to the status quo, something was off.

"Hey Duck. I just want to say that I should have listened to what you said about DiNozzo before we left."

"That sounds suspiciously like an apology Jethro." Ducky smiled at his friend.

"Just admitting when I'm wrong. Rule 51."

"Yes well, you couldn't have known what would happen with that dreadful woman." Although Ducky hadn't been with the team in Israel he knew just how evil Selin had been.

"Still. I should of kept a better eye on DiNozzo."

"How is Anthony doing today?"

"He seems fine, but who knows Duck."

"And Ziva?"

"She's fine too. It's just…" Gibbs couldn't figure out how to finish his sentence.

"Just what?" Ducky asked.

"The two of them together. Something's off."

"With their partnership?"

"I mean, they've only been back a day. Maybe it's just the transition, but…"

"Well Anthony and Ziva have always had a complicated relationship." Ducky wasn't sure complicated was the right word, but couldn't think of a more delicate way to phrase it.

Gibbs just snorted as a way of reply.

"Do you think something happened between them in Israel?"

"Yea they should've died. Twice."

"But they were able to save one another's lives. Maybe that is why they aren't themselves." Ducky suggested.

"Maybe." Gibbs shrugged. He would keep a close eye on his agents until he figured out what was up or else until things returned to normal. "We'll see if this lasts." And then he left to head up to Abby's lab to solve their latest case.

* * *

Tony had been so nice all morning it was making his teeth hurt. Every time he would normally interject a smart ass comment, he forced himself to remain silent. When he usually would have teased someone, he clamped his mouth shut. His jaw was beginning to hurt from the way his teeth were clenched in an effort to seem normal.

When he had arrived that morning Ziva had set the mood, speaking to him as if nothing had changed. She politely said good morning and went back to reading her emails. So he had decided if she was going to be polite, he would give her a dose of her own medicine and be as well-mannered and courteous as possible.

And of course this was driving her crazy. Ziva was sitting at her desk silently fuming, yet projecting an outer image of calm. She knew exactly what he was up to and she wouldn't be the first to crack. But with every passing second her resolve was wavering. When he had walked in she had decided to treat this day like any other. Ziva was now regretting that decision. She had thought that they would be able to have a conversation after work, but apparently Tony wasn't capable of waiting. She should have known that the nine year old boy inside of him had no concept of patience.

Ziva looked over at him. He was making calls about their suspect at his desk. She knew that underneath his composed façade, he was also struggling to maintain their little game.

Because that's what it was. A game. A different version of the one they always played. Weren't they supposed to be done with games? Hadn't they each decided to grow up and be honest with each other? And themselves? Ziva wondered if he would always have the ability to cause her to revert to this state. The one where they were both acting like petulant children.

Tony stood up abruptly making his way over to the elevator. Ziva assumed he was going to check in on Abby and McGee's progress. She sat struggling in her chair for a moment, uncertain how to proceed. Finally she made her decision and followed him into the elevator. Tony jabbed at the button a little too harshly, his mask beginning to slip. Ziva slid in between the doors just as they were about to shut. Once she felt the elevator begin to move, she flipped the emergency switch

They stared at each other for minutes, neither speaking nor moving.

"Is there something you would like to say to me Tony?" Ziva got the ball rolling.

"Me? Me say to you?" Tony huffed. He could feel his anger rising in the back of his throat and he fought to maintain his control over it.

"Yes," was her composed reply.

"I don't have anything to say." His tone was as light as the warm spring breeze he'd felt walking into work this morning, belying his true feelings.

"Really?" She just stared at him, her eyes unblinking. It was unnerving.

"Yes."

Ziva's eyes narrowed. She wondered how long they could keep this up.

"Is there something you'd like to say to me?" Tony hated himself for asking, but hadn't been able to stop his mouth from forming the words.

"Why thank you for asking. There is."

Tony's eyes widened in surprise and his eyebrows shot up. He could feel his heart begin to pump faster. His palms grew sweaty.

They had been standing at least two feet away from each other: Ziva by the door and Tony near the middle. Now he looked down and they were much closer. When did that happen, he wondered. He caught a whiff of essence of Ziva and had to stop himself from breathing in deep. He saw her lean slightly towards him, which caused him to feel somewhat off balance.

"I have been thinking about what you said."

"What I said?" Was he playing dumb on purpose?

"Yes. The other day in the men's room."

"Ah. Where we have all our best conversations. Perhaps we should leave this one off until I have to pee. I should have to go around 3, if you can wait." Tony was proud that he was able to keep his voice amiable despite his agitation.

"No. Now is fine."

"Good. Then by all means, continue."

Ziva could feel her control slipping. She itched to reach out and touch him. To stroke his face or slap him, she wasn't sure which. "I have thought a lot about our situation."

Tony held his breath when she paused, certain that he wouldn't like whatever was coming next. Up until this point he had been somewhat optimistic, but now he felt disappointment looming. She was going to tell him they should stay friends, ignore every feeling they had ever had to the contrary, discount all the progress they had made. Inside he felt his irritation growing.

"I do not want things to change between us."

That was it. He finally lost control and snapped. He was only human, and there was only so much he could take.

"What is wrong with you? What are you so afraid of Ziva? I thought you wanted to move forward. Stop running. But no, you're doing what you always do. I'm so tired of…"

Tony was forced to stop speaking when she clamped her hand over his mouth.

"Will you let me finish?" Ziva asked without removing her hand. His lips felt warm and wet under her palm. She stared into his green eyes which were practically throwing sparks at the moment. After a tense minute he nodded. Ziva gathered her scattered thoughts and started again.

"I am afraid, yes. I do not want to lose you in my life. And if we do this, there is a possibility it will end badly." She paused.

Tony's eyes searched hers, attempting to decipher her meaning. His heartbeat had reached a maddening crescendo, and he was sure she could hear it jumping out of his chest.

Ziva's heart rate had accelerated as well and she felt heat pulse through her body from his nearness. The warmth emanating from where their bodies met at her hand. Her mind was so clear before she had arrived to work that day, but now it was a jumbled mess of thoughts and emotions.

"There have been many relationships in my life that have ended badly, but none I needed as much as this one." She had dropped her hand and was now staring at a particularly interesting spot on the floor.

"What does that mean?"

"I can't lose you." Her eyes came up to meet his. Brown meeting green.

"You won't."

"You cannot promise that."

"Don't you think I'm scared too." Tony never admitted to feelings of weakness, especially not aloud. This admission was so out of character Ziva wasn't sure what to make of it.

"So what do we do?" She wondered if they would ever be able to get past their fears.

"I don't know. But I'm willing to try. Are you?" The last part so quiet he could barely hear it himself. But of course she heard, with that ninja hearing. It also didn't hurt that she was standing mere inches from him now.

"Are you sure it should be this difficult?" She asked, purposely avoiding his question.

"What? Relationships?"

"Yes. All of it. All of this." She gestured to the two of them, indicating all they had been through up to this point.

"They don't make movies about the ones that are easy." He replied with a small smile.

Ziva stared at him, not smiling back. Her mind raced in circles; in that moment making a decision that might change the rest of their lives. She leaned into him, her body pressing up against his. Their lips millimeters apart. He could feel her breath on his face.

"Then, yes. I will try." She finally answered his question before leaning all the way in, her lips meeting his, heat blossoming between them.

Tony sucked in a deep breath, focusing on his lips on hers and the way their bodies were melting into one another. His hands roamed over her body, reveling in the way her tight muscles felt beneath his fingers. He wrapped his arms around her as she wove her fingers through his hair.

The kiss turned greedy, each seeking to fill the desire coursing through their bodies. Heat pooled in the center of Ziva's body, suffusing her with an almost unbearable warmth. Tony pushed her back towards the wall.

"Ow." Ziva couldn't stop the sound as a sharp pain ripped through her chest.

"Oh God. Sorry. I completely forgot about your ribs." Tony apologized, mentally chastising himself.

"It's ok. I had forgotten too." She smiled up at him. And before she finished her sentence her lips were back on his.

He ran his tongue along the outside of her lips until they parted, allowing him access to her warm sweet mouth. She tasted so good he groaned against her lips. This caused her to push back against him, molding the curves of her body to his. Neither knew how long they stayed like that, touching and tasting in the elevator, but an electric noise brought them back to earth.

Ding. The elevator doors slid open as they reached their destination. The sound caused both of them to break apart and their eyes were drawn to the entrance. In the hall outside stood Abby, McGee and their faithful leader. All wore similar looks of surprise tinged with horror.

Tony and Ziva just stood there, their bodies still intertwined, staring at Gibbs, their own faces masks of fear.

Gibbs was the first to recover. "Well I guess that explains it."

"Boss. I can…" Tony began.

"Gibbs, I…I…"Ziva started.

Gibbs just shook his head, "I don't wanna know. I didn't see a thing." He turned towards the door, deciding he was taking the stairs from now on.

Abby, smiling ear to ear, turned to McGee, whose mouth was still hanging open in shock. "Well I guess we just did all that work for no reason McGee."

The doors of the elevator closed and Tony and Ziva turned back to each other.

"I think that's the best we can hope for from Gibbs," said Ziva, breaking the silence.

"Yea unless he was just going upstairs to get his gun." Tony joked.

"Well then I suggest we make the most of the next sixty seconds." Ziva replied with a flirty smile.

"Why Agent David, that sounds like an excellent idea." Tony smiled back, leaning down to continue where they had left off.

* * *

**Thank you so much to all of you who made it with me to the very end. This story took some twists and turns that I was surprised by. In the end, though, I am pleased with the final result. Thanks to everyone who has taken the time to read, review, story alert, favorite, or anything else I'm forgetting. You'll never know how much I appreciate it. **

***Just a note on the surveillance photos that have been mentioned in this story. I took them from the episode Shalom which is set at the beginning of Season 4. That is one of my favorite episodes (as evidenced by the fact that I have written a separate story all about it, which you can go check out now that you are done with this story) and I have always wondered exactly what was in those photos. I have also always believed that Tony and Ziva have a much richer relationship than we see onscreen. Essentially I take all the tiny hints they give us and believe that there is a lot more to their relationship than the viewers see. This is just my take on things, which I realize bleeds into my writing. That is just how I choose to see things, mostly so I don't get so frustrated at their lack of movement towards a real relationship. Anything that helps right? So if you were wondering where the photos were coming from, this is a really long and drawn out explanation for you. Thanks again for reading!**


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